5D's Alternative Book 3: The God of Time
by Count Morningstar
Summary: After the defeat of the Goodwin brothers, the Signers experience half a year of peace. But that peace is soon shattered when Z-one sends his assassin Paradox to put an end to the Signers. To save both Neo Domino and the future, Yusei and the others must gain help from some very unexpected allies.
1. Prologue

**Introduction:** Welcome everyone to the third installment of the 5D's Alternative trilogy. One of the things that kept me from getting this trilogy off the ground for so long was that while I had a very clear idea for what to do for _Stardust and Roses_, and at least a vague idea for _The False King_, I had absolutely no clue what to do for this story. But when I finally just sat down and started work on _Stardust and Roses_, the idea for the third story just started to come to me. I guess it proves that sometimes the only way to get unstuck is to just sit down and start writing. Anyway, this is going to be a very major story filed with a lot of "guest stars". So get ready for an awesome ride.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix.

* * *

Prologue

Sherry LeBlanc awoke to find that she was in a strange white room full of white furniture. It was a room that was totally unfamiliar to her, and certainly not the room she had down in the Satellite prison known as the Pit. Sherry tried to recall just how she could've wound up in her current surroundings. It was a little hard because her mind felt as if it was in a fog. Then she remembered Divine preparing to perform some sort of procedure on her fellow elimination squad member, Aki Izayoi, in order to make her more compliant. Then she recalled the Infinity Triad bursting into the room and revealing that Divine had killed the little brother of her other fellow squad member, Misty Lola. Then at last, Sherry recalled Misty using her powers to summon some kind of lizard monster to eat Divine like an insect. After that, a member of the Infinity Triad had knocked her out.

The door to the room suddenly slid open. Walking in was Misty, wearing a white tight-fitting bodysuit with green markings on it, along with a white cape, elbow-high gloves, and knee-high boots.

"Oh, you're finally awake Sherry." Misty happily observed. "I was actually starting to worry."

"What the hell's going on Misty?" the blonde duelist asked. "What is this place?"

"This is the Arc Cradle." Misty explained. "Come with me. There's a lot you need to know about."

"And just where are we going?" Sherry asked as Misty pulled her from the bed.

"To see the one who runs this place." The dark-haired woman replied as she led Sherry out of the room.

Sherry followed Misty out of the room down a long dark-grey hallway with multicolored circuit pathways running along the walls. Sherry almost felt as if she was walking through a tomb. After a few moments, the two came to a door, which slid open to allow them to walk through. The room on the other side was stark white and seemed to stretch on forever in all directions except for the ceiling or the floor. The temperature of the room was extremely cold. Only seconds after entering the room, the door Misty and Sherry had entered slid shut behind them. The sound caused Sherry to glance back, and when she did she found that the door was no longer even there.

The two women walked a little further into the room until they came upon a strange floating machine. It was white in color and was shaped like an inverted coma. The device also had what appeared to be a head with a strange mask on it.

"Lord Z-one, Sherry is awake." Misty spoke to the machine.

The machine known as Z-one turned around to look at Sherry. "So she is." He observed indifferently with a deep voice. "Welcome, Sherry LeBlanc."

"Who or what the hell are you?" Sherry asked.

"I am Z-one, the last human." The machine replied.

"Last human? What's that supposed to mean?" Sherry inquired.

"You are now in what you would call the future." Z-one explained. "There is much that needs to be explained to you. But know now that you shall be serving me."

"Look pal, I don't know what kind of game you're playing here, but I'm not going to have any part of it!" Sherry declared. "Now get me the hell out of here fast or else you're going to regret it!"

"How dare you order me?" Z-one responded in a very cold and angry tone.

Suddenly Sherry began to glow with a faint pink aura and fell to her knees. She found that she couldn't breath. It wasn't like she was being strangled. It was as if something was crushing her chest. Like something was squeezing the life out of her.

"Lord Z-one, please stop!" Misty begged. "Sherry didn't mean what she said! Please!"

After a moment, the aura faded from Sherry's body and she felt like she could breath again. She was on all fours trying to catch her breath.

"To think that after all this time you can still enrage me." Z-one remarked. "You always had a talent for that."

"Why are you… talking like you… know me?" Sherry asked between breaths.

"In another time we did know each other quite well. But from your perspective, this is our first meeting." Z-one answered. "In any case, I strongly advice that you do as I say and not take that tone with me again. Misty might not be there to save you the next time."

Suddenly another door appeared in the room. Stepping through it was a young-looking man with long blonde hair decorated with large purple ornaments towards the front. There was a red mark on his face and he wore a sleeveless black and red leather outfit with a pair of elbow-high gloves with spikes lining the top.

"Am I interrupting something Lord Z-one?" the man asked.

"Not at all, Paradox." Z-one assured the blonde. "I was simply informing Ms. LeBlanc of her place here. Why Jose and the other two chose to send her here, I'll never know."

"I'm sure Aporia's incarnations wouldn't have sent her to you if they didn't think she could serve a purpose." Paradox pointed out.

"Yes, I suppose she might not be completely useless." Z-one replied. "Now, why have you come?"

"I merely wished to inform you that all my preparations are finally complete." Paradox reported. "My plan to eliminate the Signers can now begin."

"Good. Proceed immediately." Z-one ordered. "Keep in mind though Paradox, eliminating the Signers is not our primary objective at the moment. Even if your assassins fail, they will still succeed in finishing what Aporia started."

"I understand, Lord Z-one." Paradox replied with a bow. With that, the door Paradox came through appeared and he left.

"Just what is going on here?" Sherry asked, doing her best to keep her attitude in check.

"To put it simply, we are trying to change the future." Z-one explained. "Or rather, we are trying to save the world."

"And how do you plan to do this?" Sherry asked.

"By any means necessary." Z-one answered.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Originally I was planning to wait and put the prologue up until after I got the actual first chapter done. But I just couldn't wait to get this first scene between Sherry and Z-one put up. One of the initial problems I had with coming up with this story was figuring out how I was going to handle Z-one. In the end though, the answer was quite simple. So to those of you reading, forget what you know about Z-one (besides the fact that he's a cyborg from the future, of course). The first chapter should hopefully be up fairly soon, so stay tuned.

In the meantime, please review and let me know what you think.


	2. Yesterday's Assassin

**Author's Note:** I'd like to thank everyone who's reviewed this story so far. I'm real excited to finally be working on this story. I also hope that everyone is having a good Labor Day weekend. And now without further delay, here's chapter one.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix.

* * *

Chapter 1: Yesterday's Assassin

It had been half a year since the defeat of Rex and Rudger Goodwin, and in that time there had been sweeping changes to both Neo Domino and Satellite. The two landmasses had been joined by a massive bridge that also served as part of a special highway system built for Turbo Duels. Satellite had also become a far cry from the slums and ruins that it had once been. The island had been restored and changed into a nice place to live. It was the dawn of a new age for the city.

Despite the peace that existed, however, the Signers knew that it wouldn't last. For only they knew that the threat of Z-one was hanging over the city, waiting to strike from a dark future to destroy everything. Yet none of them were going to let that threat stop them from living their lives. Only a month after the fall of the Goodwin brothers, Yusei and Aki had gotten married. Since then, Aki had been studying to get into medical school. Meanwhile, Yusei was maintaining his status as the duel champion of Neo Domino.

That afternoon, Yusei was heading back from the stadium after defeating another challenger. As he turned his D-Wheel to head for the Fudo mansion, the consol of his D-Wheel began to beep. Yusei pressed the proper button and the face of a very familiar burgundy-haired woman appeared on the screen.

"Hi Aki." Yusei greeted.

_"Hey."_ Aki greeted back. _"I caught the end of your duel on TV. Sorry I couldn't be there in person."_

"It's fine. How's the studying going?" Yusei asked.

_"A little slow."_ Aki sighed. _"But I think it's going pretty well."_

"Well good. I'll be back home in a few minutes." Yusei informed her.

_"Oh, could you swing by the store on the way?"_ Aki requested. _"We're out of milk."_

"Sure. Be back soon." Yusei replied. "Love you."

_"Love you too."_ Aki responded before the screen went blank.

As Yusei neared the intersection, he suddenly noticed that someone was blocking his path. It was a rider on a silver D-Wheel that resembled a mechanical dragon. The rider was a young man with long dark-green hair that ended just above the shoulders. He had on a black riding helmet with a long black coat and pants. As Yusei got closer and got a better look at the man's face, he couldn't help but feel that he looked very familiar. Yet he couldn't place the face.

Yusei pulled up in front of the mysterious rider. "Hey, you mind getting out of the way?"

"You're Yusei Fudo, right?" the rider in black asked.

"Yeah, and who are you?" Yusei asked with a suspicious eye.

"You've probably heard of me before." The rider smirked. "The name's Zane Truesdale."

It suddenly hit Yusei how he recognized the rider. Zane Truesdale was a top pro duelist from many years ago, a user of the powerful Cyber Dragons. But Yusei couldn't believe that young man before him was that duelist. Not only was he the wrong age, Yusei knew for a fact that Zane Truesdale was forced to retire due to heart difficulties.

"What kind of trick are you trying to pull?" Yusei demanded to know. "There's no way that you could be Zane Truesdale!"

"Yet here I am." Zane argued. "And I've come for one reason, to kill you."

"Why do you want to kill me?" Yusei asked.

"That's not important. Right now I'm challenging you to a duel!" Zane declared. "And there's no way you're getting past me unless you beat me!"

"Fine!" Yusei agreed. "Let's do this!"

Yusei and Zane took off down the road. With the announcement of their duel, the highway system changed and redirected them onto the special track system of bridges that ran throughout the city. Yusei was the first to make it onto the bridge and gained the first turn.

"Track Field, activate! Junk City!" Yusei announced. The surrounding city outside transformed to one made of junk and scrap metal. "I summon Junk Blader in Defense Mode!"

Appearing on the track alongside Yusei was a warrior clad in purple armor. On his back was a tattered black cape and in his hand he carried a large sword.

"I set one card on the field and end my turn!" Yusei announced.

"Oh, I forgot to mention one thing." Zane revealed as he drew his first card. "If you lose this duel, your D-Wheel is going to explode."

"What!" Yusei exclaimed.

"My move." Zane continued. "Because you control a monster, I can summon Cyber Dragon from my hand!"

Materializing on the track to fly alongside Zane was a large silver mechanical dragon with a serpent-like body. Yusei recognized the dragon instantly. It was indeed one of the famed Cyber Dragons used by Zane Truesdale. Yet he still couldn't believe that the duelist facing him was the real Zane.

"Next I summon Proto-Cyber Dragon in Attack Mode!" Zane announced.

Appearing on the track was a smaller mechanical dragon that was dull-grey on color. It had a pair of small beady orange eyes and each segment of its body was cylindrical.

"While Proto-Cyber Dragon is on the field, it's treated like the normal Cyber Dragon." Zane continued. "I activate as Spell card, Polymerization! I now fuse my two Cyber Dragons together to summon Cyber Twin Dragon!"

A small vortex appeared on the track and pulled in the two dragons. Emerging from the vortex was a new silver mechanical serpentine dragon with two heads. The head on the right was like a dragon's, while the head on the left looked more like a serpent's.

"Cyber Twin Dragon, annihilate Junk Blader!" Zane commanded. "Evolution Twin Burst!"

The right head of Cyber Twin Dragon fired an intense blast of blue energy at Junk Blader. The warrior was hit and completely vaporized by the attack.

"I'm not done yet! Cyber Twin Dragon's effect allows it to attack a second time!" Zane revealed. "Cyber Twin Dragon, attack Yusei directly! Evolution Twin Burst!"

The mechanical dragon fired a blast from its left head and hit Yusei in the back. Yusei cried out as his life points dropped to 1200.

"And here I thought you were going to be more of a challenge." Zane remarked.

"I activate a Trap, Shock Draw!" Yusei announced after recovering from the attack. "This card lets me draw a card for every thousand points of damage I took this turn!"

"Fine, I end my turn." Zane announced.

"Since you're ending you're turn, Junk City lets me summon Junk Blader back to the field in Defense Mode!" Yusei announced.

A blue ball of light shot up from one of the skyscrapers of the scrap-metal city. The ball of light landed on the track and faded to reveal Junk Blader.

"Just what do you think you can accomplish with that pathetic monster?" Zane asked.

"I'll show you!" Yusei told him as he drew his next card. "I summon the Tuner monster, Quick-Span Knight!"

Appearing on the track was a small human-shaped robot that was grey in color. Its head resembled the head of a wrench and had two large eyes on the front.

"I tune the level three Quick-Span Knight into the level four Junk Blader for a level seven Synchro Summon!" Yusei announced.

Quick-Span Knight flashed orange and changed into three rings of green light. The rings encircled Junk Blader and transformed the warrior into four balls of white light.

"Clustering stars come together to signal the advent of a divine force! Create the path its light shines upon!" Yusei chanted. "Synchro Summon! Descend to earth now, Lightning Warrior!"

The lights flashed and a massive bolt of blue lightning struck the track. The lightning faded to reveal a new warrior clad in silvery-white armor. He had long blonde hair and a red scarf around his neck.

"Is that thing supposed to impress me?" Zane scoffed. "That summoning was quite the show, but your warrior only has 2400 ATK, which is just a little two low to stand against my Cyber Twin Dragon."

"True, but when Quick-Span Knight is used for a Syncrho Summon, I can lower the ATK of one enemy monster by 500 points!" Yusei revealed.

From out of nowhere, Quick-Span Knight's head flew through the air and struck Cyber Twin Dragon in the chest. The mechanical dragon crackled with blue electricity as its ATK fell to 2300.

"I equip Lightning Warrior with the Spell card, Junk Barrage!" Yusei announced. Lightning Warrior began to glow with a faint green aura. "Lightning Warrior, attack Cyber Twin Dragon! Lightning Punisher!"

Lightning Warrior's fist crackled with electricity as he struck Cyber Twin Dragon. The mechanical dragon's body broke apart before exploding in a blast of fire and smoke. But the strike had only reduced Zane's life points to 3900.

"That wasn't even a scratch." Zane scoffed.

"I'm not done! When Lightning Warrior destroys a monster in battle, my opponent takes 300 points of damage for each card in his hand!" Yusei revealed. "Right now you have three cards, which means you lose 900 points!"

A beam of electricity fired from the red gem mounted in the center on Lightning Warrior's chest armor. The beam struck Zane and his life points dropped down to 3000.

"I'm not done!" Yusei continued. "Because Lightning Warrior is equipped with Junk Barrage, you take damage equal to half of Cyber Twin Dragon's ATK!"

Suddenly a barrage of flaming debris dropped from the sky and struck Zane on the track. Zane emerged from the explosion unharmed, but his life points had fallen to 1850.

"I set one card on the field and end my turn!" Yusei announced.

"Okay, you're not half bad after all." Zane admitted as he drew his next card. "But I'm afraid this duel's over! I banish Cyber End Dragon from my deck to summon Malefic Cyber End Dragon!"

Suddenly materializing on the track was a massive mechanical dragon with a silver serpent-like body. It had three heads, and on its back was a pair of massive black wings with white trim. Each of its three heads wore a mask. The snake-like head on the right side of the dragon's body wore a black mask with white eyes, while the head on the opposite side wore a white mask with black eyes. The center head wore a mask that was back on its right side and white on its left. Yusei knew something was off. The normal Cyber End Dragon was one of the most powerful cards in the Cyber series, but it was a Fusion monster. He had never heard of a "Malefic" version.

"This is one of the most powerful cards in the game!" Zane declared. "A monster with 4000 ATK that can be summoned in an instant! Malefic Cyber End, obliterate Lightning Warrior! Malefic Evolution Burst!"

"I activate a Trap, Scrap-Iron Scarecrow!" Yusei quickly announced. "This card stops your dragon's attack!"

The dragon reared back all three of its heads and fired blasts of black energy from all three mouths. Just before the blasts could hit, a simple scarecrow made of two sticks, a helmet, and a pair of gloves appeared in front of Lightning Warrior. An invisible barrier created by the scarecrow blocked Malefic Cyber End's attack. Once the attack ended, the scarecrow disappeared.

"I end my turn." Zane announced with a scowl. "So, a Trap that negates attacks and resets itself on the field. That could get annoying. But don't think you can hide behind that card forever! Sooner or later I'll break through that little barrier of yours and you'll be finished! Face it, Yusei! There's no way you can win this!"

"Don't be so sure!" Yusei told him. "Look, whoever you are! I don't care if you're the real Zane Truesdale or not! There's no way I'll lose!"

Suddenly the dragonhead mark on Yusei's right arm began to glow with a crimson light. At the same time, the top card of his deck was glowing red. Seeing as it was his turn, Yusei drew the card. The light faded to reveal a card he hadn't seen before, but he knew just what it was and how to use it.

"This ends now!" Yusei declared. "I summon the Tuner monster, Junk Mail!"

Appearing on the field was a small dirty grey robot with large eyes. Its body looked as if it had been made from an old helmet.

"I tune the level one Junk Mail into the level seven Lightning Warrior for a level eight Synchro Summon!" Yusei announced.

Junk Mail's eyes flashed orange and it changed into a single ring of green light. The rings encircled Lightning Warrior and transformed him into seven balls of white light.

"Clustering hopes will become a new shining star! Become the path its light shines upon!" Yusei chanted. "Synchro Summon! Take flight, Stardust Dragon!"

The lights flashed and became a pillar of energy. The energy soon faded to reveal a silvery-white dragon with magnificent wings. On the back of its head it had three long horns, as well as a single horn on the front of its snout.

"That flashy dragon of yours only has 2500 ATK. It can't even come close to Malefic Cyber End's power." Zane told him.

"I equip Stardust Dragon with a monster from my hand, Dragon Star Weapon-Power Reflect Armor!" Yusei announced.

Flying down from the sky was a small red spacecraft with a front end styled like the head of a dragon. The craft divided in the middle and extended apart to create a hole for Stardust Dragon's head. Afterwards it folded to become armor for the dragon's torso. On the front of the armor was something that looked like a blue gem.

"A monster equipped with Power Reflect Armor gains 1500 ATK!" Yusei revealed. "Which means Stardust Dragon's ATK is now 4000!"

"So the ATK power of our monsters is now equal." Zane observed. "What now?"

"Because he's equipped with Power Reflect Armor, Stardust Dragon gains half the ATK of any monster he battles!" Yusei revealed. "Which will make him 2000 points stronger than Malefic End!"

"What!" Zane exclaimed.

"Stardust Dragon, attack Malefic Cyber End!" Yusei commanded. "Dragon Star Impact!"

Stardust began to glow with an intense red aura and flew full speed at Malefic Cyber End. The impact was so great that Stardust Dragon tore through the mechanical dragon like tin foil. The pieces of Malefic Dragon exploded with smoke and fire, and Zane's remaining life points dropped to zero. With the duel over, Stardust Dragon vanished and the surrounding city returned to normal. Zane meanwhile had been knocked unconscious. Just as Yusei was about to go over and check on the famed duelist, both Zane and his D-Wheel vanished in a flash of pink light.

"What the…?" Yusei began to wonder.

"Greetings Yusei Fudo." A voice spoke from behind.

Yusei turned around to see a rider on a long white D-Wheel styled like a dragon. He had long blonde hair with purple ornaments and a sleeveless black and red outfit. On his face he wore a strange black and white mask.

"Who are you?" Yusei demanded to know.

The rider removed his mask to reveal his face. "I am Paradox. You can ask your friend Antinomy about me."

"You work for Z-one." Yusei deduced.

"Very good." Paradox praised. "You did quite well against my assassin."

"Who was that guy?" Yusei asked.

"The famed Zane Truesdale, of course. I took him from the past in order to face you." Paradox explained. "He was brainwashed to execute a single command, to kill you."

"So where is he now?" Yusei asked.

"He had served his purpose, so I sent him back to his own time." Paradox explained. "I assure you that he remembers nothing of his experience. And in his time, he's only been gone for a few seconds. Z-one doesn't want me to do anything that would alter the timeline too much."

"Okay, so now what?" Yusei asked. "Are you going to duel me next?"

"I've merely come to congratulate you and send Mr. Truesdale back where he came from." Paradox answered. "Be warned though, this will not be out last encounter. There are many strong duelists in the past, and many of them will make final assassins to kill you and your friends. Our battle through time has only just begun."

Before Yusei could respond, Paradox vanished in a flash of pink light. Yusei sighed heavily, but there was nothing more he could do at the moment but go home. Though first he had to make a quick trip to the store. He couldn't forget the milk.

* * *

Aki waited nervously on the front step of the mansion with Leo and Luna. The three of them knew right away that Yusei was in trouble when their Signer marks went off. At long last, Yusei pulled up in front of the house. Aki and the twins ran up to him as Yusei pulled off his helmet and dismounted. In his left hand he carried a single grocery bag.

"Are you okay?" Aki asked as she put her arms around him. "The twins and I were afraid something bad happened to you."

"I'm fine. Don't worry." Yusei assured her before kissing her on the forehead.

"What happened, Yusei?" Leo asked.

"It's a long story." Yusei replied. "Where's Bruno?"

Almost on cue, the blue-haired mechanic came running out from the garage. "Yusei, are you all right?"

"I'm fine." Yusei assured him. "Bruno, do you know a guy named Paradox?"

Bruno's expression became very grave. "Yeah, he's one of the survivors from the future along with me, Aporia, and Z-one. Did you duel him?"

"No, he sent someone after me." Yusei replied. "Zane Truesdale."

"Wait, as in the famous pro duelist?" Leo asked with a quirked brow. "Luna and I watched a video about him in class a few days ago."

"But how could you have duel someone like Zane?" Luna asked Yusei.

"Paradox said he took him from the past and brainwashed him to kill me." Yusei explained.

"I'm not surprised by that at all." Bruno replied. "It would take a lot of power for the Arc Cradle to come here to this time, but sending single individuals through time is a simple matter for us."

"Paradox told me after the duel that Zane wouldn't be the last person he'd send after us." Yusei revealed.

"So wait, does this mean we'll have to fight a bunch of duelists from the past?" Leo wondered.

"We better tell the others about this." Yusei decided. "Looks like Z-one's finally made his move."

* * *

Paradox walked through the halls of the Arc Cradle and entered the endless white room. Inside, Z-one floated silently in the room's center, completely alone.

The cyborg noticed Paradox's arrival and hovered towards him. "What have you to report?"

"Yusei Fudo has defeated Zane Truesdale." Paradox informed him.

Z-one began to chuckle, surprising Paradox. "I'd expect no less from him. A rather impressive feat, actually."

"Shall I proceed as planned, my lord?" Paradox asked.

"Yes, continue your efforts." Z-one replied. "While it is not a top priority, I'd prefer if the Signers were eliminated before we begin the next phase."

"I shall not disappoint you." Paradox assured you. "With my next move, the weakest of the Signers will be the first to die."

* * *

**Author's Note:** Another big problem I had with getting this whole trilogy off the ground was figuring out the role Paradox was going to play. Having him go back through time would've just been rehashing the movie, and just having him as a normal duelist just seemed like a waste. Then it came to me. Instead of Yusei traveling back through time, I'd have Paradox send duelists from the past to kill the Signers.

With that, we now come to our very first "guest star", Zane Truesdale from _Yu-Gi-Oh! GX_. Sorry if I kept his duel with Yusei a little too simple. But keep in mind that this is only the first chapter. Anyway, I've thought long and hard about what classic character would appear in this story. And the lineup has already been decided. This is going to be a big story.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	3. Revenge of the Losers

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix.

* * *

Chapter 2: Revenge of the Losers

Yusei had quickly called in the rest of the gang after his encounter with Paradox and the brainwashed Zane Truesdale. By the time evening had fallen, Jack and Carly had arrived at the Fudo mansion. Crow, Raven, Kiryu, and Sect had arrived from Satellite only a few minutes after. With everyone gathered in the mansion's drawing room, Yusei had revealed what had happened with the duel. By the time Yusei had finished his tale, the implication of what was going on had become clear.

"Man, so a whole bunch of brainwashed duelists from the past are gonna come after us." Crow commented. "There've been a lot of powerhouse pro duelists over the years. It's kind of an honor in a weird way, but the fact that they're trying to kill us makes it a little scary too."

"I know. Yusei just barely made it against Zane Truesdale." Raven agreed. "And Zane was known as one of the best."

"If the best that this Paradox and Z-one can do is send a bunch of relics from the past after us, then they're pathetic!" Jack scoffed. "There's no way that any of those old duelists could hope to compete against us."

"I don't know Jack. Some of those duelists are still considered pretty strong." Carly pointed out. "Think what would happen if Paradox sent one of the big three like Yugi Muto after us."

"Duelists like Yugi Muto and Zane Truesdale may have been hot stuff back then, but this is our time!" Jack declared. "The game has changed since they were in business."

"Jack's got a point." Leo agreed. "I mean those duelists would probably be using some pretty old cards."

"A lot of old cards can still be pretty powerful even today." Luna reminded her brother. "Take my deck for example. A lot of the cards in it are pretty old, and win duels more than you do."

"Besides, it seems like Paradox isn't just brainwashing these duelists. He's giving them new cards to use." Yusei revealed. "When I dueled Zane, he used a card that I'd never seen before. It was some sort of evil version of his Cyber End Dragon."

"Never mind if we can beat these duelists or not. I'd like to know what our next move is." Kiryu interjected. "Are we just supposed to sit around and wait for Paradox's next assassin?"

"I'm currently working on a device that should allow us to detect temporal distortions." Bruno revealed. "At the very least, it will tell us when Paradox sends another duelist from the past."

"How soon will it be done?" Yusei asked.

"Hopefully by tomorrow afternoon." Bruno answered.

"Then I guess until we can figure out something else we should call it a night." Yusei decided. "We'll all need to be well-rested the next time Paradox strikes."

* * *

Since the defeat of the Goodwin Brothers, Leo and Luna had been enrolled in the city's Duel Academy. On the afternoon after the meeting at the Fudo mansion, the twins were returning home on the special four-wheeled D-Wheel that they shared.

"I don't see what's so great about that Trevor guy!" Leo complained, speaking of another academy student. "So what if he has that flashy Lightsworn deck?"

"You just don't like him because he's popular and he beat you two times in this morning's lesson." Luna told him.

Before the conversation could go any further, Leo spotted a pair of D-Wheels parked before them ahead. The riders were fairly short young men. One had long dark-brown hair and savage eyes, and was wearing a red riding helmet with a dark-green long-sleeved shirt with a tan vest and a pair of pale blue jeans. His D-Wheel was red and styled to look like a dinosaur. The other rider had on a green riding helmet with a pair of thick yellow glasses with an insect motif. He had on a green zipped-up jacket with the image of a black beetle on the front, and a pair of tan shorts. The green D-Wheel he was on was styled like an insect, with the vehicle's red headlights serving as the eyes.

"You those Signer brats, Leo and Luna?" the rider of the dinosaur D-Wheel asked.

"Who the heck are you guys?" Leo asked with a suspicious glare.

"Lord Paradox sent us here to do away with you." The rider of the insect D-Wheel explained.

"So you're two of Paradox's assassins!" Luna realized.

"That's right!" the rider of the dinosaur D-Wheel confirmed. "And you brats have really landed in trouble, because now you're up against me, the king of all dinosaur duelists, Rex Raptor!"

"And me, the master of all insects, Weevil Underwood!" the rider of the insect D-Wheel dramatically added.

"Uh… who are you guys again?" Leo asked, causing Rex and Weevil to fall off their D-Wheels. "Hey Luna, have you heard of these guys?"

"Nope." Luna answered. "But I guess they must be from the past if Paradox sent them."

"I thought he was just going to send famous duelists after us." Leo replied. "This is kinda disappointing."

"You little brats!" Weevil shouted as he and Rex remounted their D-Wheels. "How dare you treat us like we're nothing?"

"We're gonna make you pay for that!" Rex declared.

"Can we do this another time?" Leo requested. "I'm not really in the mood for this right now."

"Yeah, you guys seem kind of annoying." Luna agreed.

"Fat chance! Either you brats duel us, or we'll run you off the road!" Rex threatened.

"Looks like these guys won't leave them alone until we duel them." Luna sighed.

"Fine! Let's get this over with." Leo grudgingly agreed.

Weevil, Rex, and the twins took off down the road at top speed. With the announcement of the duel, the city's highway system redirected them onto the nearest dueling bridge. Just when it seemed like the twins were going to make it onto the bridge first, Weevil suddenly pulled ahead.

"The first turn is mine!" Weevil declared. "And since this is a tag duel, I get to decide the order of turns! I'll be going first of course, followed by the girl, then Rex, and finally the brat. Now, I activate the Track Field, Hive City!"

The surrounding city suddenly morphed and became a city made of tall bee hive-like buildings and towers with honeycombed walls. The glass walls of the track had even changed, gaining an orange tint and a honeycomb pattern.

"One other thing." Weevil continued as he drew his first card. "Once Rex and I win this duel, our D-Wheels will send a signal to yours that will cause its engine to overload, making it blow sky high with you on it!"

"It's just like when Yusei dueled Zane yesterday!" Luna realized.

"I set one monster on the field!" Weevil announced. "And thanks to the effect of Hive City, I set one more Insect monster on the field as well! That ends my turn."

"What? He can really set two monsters on the field per turn?" Leo protested. "I knew this duel would be a pain!"

Luna drew her first card. "I set two cards on the field! Then I summon Mystical Elf in Defense Mode!"

Materializing on the track was a woman with blue skin and long shimmering blonde hair that went down past her waist. She had on a sort of white crown and long green robes that started just below her shoulders.

"That ends my turn." Luna announced.

Rex drew his first card. "I summon Two-Headed King Rex in Attack Mode!"

Appearing on the track alongside Rex was a purple tyrannosaurus-like dinosaur with two heads that extended from long necks. Each head had three short yellow horns extending towards the back.

"I'll set one card on the field and end my turn!" Rex announced.

Leo drew his first card. "I summon Morphtronic Scopen in Attack Mode!"

Materializing on the track was what looked like a large microscope. Parts of the microscope extended and unfolded to turn the object into a sort of robot. Leo and Luna looked at one another and nodded.

"I tune my level three Morphtronic Scopen into Luna's level four Mystical Elf for a level seven Synchro Summon!" Leo announced.

The microscope robot flashed orange and changed into three rings made of green light. The rings encircled Luna's elf and transformed her into four balls of white light.

"Docking strength with courage to protect world peace!" Leo Chanted. "Synchro Summon! Envoy of love and justice, Power Tool Dragon!"

The lights flashed and became a pillar of energy. The energy quickly faded to reveal a mechanical dragon with yellow and grey armor. Its right arm ended in a large blue backhoe scoop, and mounted on its left forearm was a green jackhammer-like attachment. At the end of its grey tail was the spade of a shovel.

"I activate Power Tool Dragon's effect and add a random Equip Spell to my hand!" Leo announced. He took the card that popped out of the center of his deck, and after looking at it he shrugged. "Now I equip Power Tool Dragon with 7 Completed! This card let's me increase Power Tool Dragon's ATK by 700!"

"Be careful, Leo." Luna warned. "It might not be too safe to attack."

"I know. Dinosaur guy probably has a Trap waiting." Leo agreed.

"Not only that, each of those two monsters bug guy has on the field probably has a nasty effect." Luna pointed out. "Sort of like the Skeleton Knight's Skull Spider monsters."

"Hey! We have names, y'know!" Weevil protested.

"Like they're worth remembering!" Leo sarcastically replied. "Okay Power Tool Dragon, attack one of bug guy's monsters! Crafty Break!"

As Power Tool Dragon flew at one of the large cards that represented Weevil's monsters, the card in question was revealed to be a fairly large insect-like creature with a humanoid build. It was greenish-brown in color and had three claws on the end of both its long forearms. On the sides of its head was a pair of very small horns.

"You fell for it!" Weevil cackled. "Your toy dragon's attack will finish off my Man-Eater Bug, but insect's effect will take your dragon with it!"

The man-eating insect leapt through the air at Leo's mechanical dragon. The two monsters collided, creating a huge explosion. But when the smoke cleared, Power Tool Dragon was still on the track.

"What!" Weevil explained. "How is that dragon still alive?"

"I can prevent Power Tool Dragon from being destroyed by sending one of the cards equipped to it to the Graveyard." Leo explained. "Seriously dude, who uses Man-Eater Bug anymore?"

"These guys are from the past, so maybe that card is new in their time." Luna assumed.

"Then these guys must be from the stone age." Leo chuckled. "I mean the one guy does use dinosaurs."

"What the hell did you just say?" Weevil protested.

"You punks are gonna pay for that!" Rex declared.

"Whatever." Leo replied as he rolled his eyes. "I end my turn."

Weevil drew his next card and began to laugh when he saw what he got. "Now you little brats are really going to pay! I summon Pinch Hopper in Attack Mode!" A large green grasshopper with blue wings appeared on the track. "Next I play a Spell card, Eradicating Aerosol! This card lets me destroy one Insect monster on the field, and the monster I choose is my Pinch Hopper!"

A giant green can of bug spray appeared in the air above Weevil's grasshopper. The can sprayed Pinch Hopper with its toxic concoction, causing it to die and shatter into bits of light.

"Why the heck would you destroy your own monster?" a confused Leo asked.

"Because when Pinch Hopper is destroyed, its effect lets me play a stronger insect from my hand!" Weevil explained. "Come forth, Metal Armored Bug!"

Suddenly appearing on the track was a gigantic beetle that was larger than a semi-truck. Its exoskeleton was made of shining grey metal.

"Since your robot dragon no longer has its Equip Spell, my Metal Armored Bug's 2800 ATK is more than enough to finish it off!" Weevil gloated. "Metal Armored Bug, attack Power Tool Dragon! Full Metal Stampede!"

"I activate my face down card Shrink!" Luna announced, just as the armored insect began to skitter towards Power Tool Dragon. "This card cuts the ATK of your bug in half!"

The armored insect quickly began to shrink in size as it neared Leo's dragon. The much smaller bug rammed into Power Tool Dragon's chest only to bounce off, not even leaving a scratch on the dragon's armor.

"Power Tool Dragon, swat that bug with Crafty Break!" Leo commanded.

The mechanical dragon swung at Metal Armored Bug with its shovel claw. The insect shattered into bits of light, causing Weevil and Rex's life points to drop to 7100. Weevil was stunned by the turn of events that just took place.

"You idiot!" Rex cursed at Weevil. "How the hell could you screw up destroying some kid's toy dragon?"

"Shut up!" the insect duelist shot back. "I have no choice but to end my turn."

Luna drew her next card. "I summon Sunlight Unicorn in Attack Mode!"

Materializing on the track to gallop alongside the twins was a white horse with a blue mane and tail that glowed with an unearthly light. On the forehead of the horse was a small blue horn.

"I activate Power Tool Dragon's effect for myself and add a random Equip Spell to my hand!" Luna announced. "I equip Sunlight Unicorn with Horn of the Unicorn, raising his ATK from 1800 to 2500!" The horn on the unicorn's head grew in length and turned gold. "I also equip Power Tool Dragon with Fairy Meteor Crush!" The mechanical dragon began to glow with a pink aura. "Power Tool Dragon, attack bug guy's monster! Crafty Break!"

Power Tool Dragon flew at the other large card on the track next to Weevil with its shovel claw raised. As the dragon cam near, the monster was revealed to be a pinkish caterpillar-like creature with blue markings on its body. At the end of what looked to be its head was a single yellow spike. Power Tool Dragon swung down and destroyed the worm monster.

"You foolish girl!" Weevil cackled. "Thanks to my Needle Worm's effect, you have to send the five cards on top of your deck to the Graveyard!"

"Oh well. It could've been worse." Luna replied indifferently as she placed five cards in her Graveyard. "Besides, since Power Tool Dragon was equipped with Fairy Meteor Crush, it was able to inflict battle damage even though your monster was in Defense Mode."

"Oh… yeah. That's right." A shocked Weevil quickly realized.

"You moron! Why couldn't you have played a monster with higher DEF?" Rex cursed at Weevil.

"How the hell was I supposed to know that girl had a card like Fairy Meteor Crush?" Weevil shot back.

"Wow Luna! You're really going on the offensive in this duel." Leo praised.

"Yeah, well I want to get this duel over with as quickly as possible." Luna replied. "Insect guy's laugh is really getting on my nerves."

"We have names!" Weevil shouted at them.

"Don't care." Luna responded. "Sunlight Unicorn, attack Two-Headed King Rex! Golden Unicorn Spear!"

"Not so fast, I activate a Trap, Mirror Force!" Rex announced as Sunlight Unicorn began to gallop towards his monster. "I may not be able to get rid of that dragon of yours with this card, but it'll at least fry your unicorn and stop its attack!"

"I activate a Trap of my own, Trap Jammer!" Luna announced. "This card stops your Mirror Force from working!"

The unicorn's charge continued and he rammed into the two-headed dinosaur, impaling it in the chest with his golden horn. The strike reduced Rex and Weevil's life points to 4500.

"Rex, you bonehead!" Weevil cursed.

"Shut up! It's not like I screwed up as bad as you!" the dinosaur duelist shot back.

"I'll end my turn now." Luna announced. "Boy, you guys don't really seem too good at this game."

* * *

Misty and Sherry sat in a dimly lit room aboard the Arc Cradle having lunch at a small table. Paradox entered the room and walked over to a control panel embedded in the far wall.

"Hello, Lord Paradox." Misty greeted. "What are you doing here?"

"I've come to check on the progress of my two newest assassins." Paradox explained as he pressed a few buttons on the control panel. "They're currently engaged in a tag duel with two of the Signers."

In moments, a large holographic screen appeared in the center of the room. The screen showed an aerial view of the twins' duel with Rex and Weevil, as well as the life points of each team. Sherry and Misty got up to look at the screen.

"These assassins of yours wouldn't happen to be the two guys that are losing, would they?" Sherry asked.

"Unfortunately they are." Paradox confirmed with a slight scowl.

"Wait, so two of the Signers are children?" Misty suddenly realized.

"It is a shame, yes. But their existence would interfere with Lord Z-one's plan." Paradox told her. "We cannot allow anything to get in our way if the future is to be saved."

"Kids or not, they seem to be wiping the floor with your two goons." Sherry observed. "They've lost almost half their life points, while those kids have two powerful monsters on the track. Plus it looks like they haven't even taken a single hit."

"Perhaps I was being a bit too lenient when I selected such minor league duelists such as Rex Raptor and Weevil Underwood." Paradox admitted. "Still, with the cards I've given those two, eliminating should be a simple matter even for them."

* * *

Rex drew his next card and began to laugh upon seeing what it was. "Playtime's over, kiddies! I activate Mystical Space Typhoon and destroy Fairy Meteor Crush!"

A small whirlwind suddenly appeared on the track around Power Tool Dragon. It lasted for only a moment. And by the time it ended, the mechanical dragon's faint pink aura had completely faded.

"Get ready for the ultimate Dinosaur monster!" Rex declared. "I remove Black Tyranno from my deck to summon Atomic T-Rex!"

Materializing on the track was a black tyrannosaurus that was twice the size of Power Tool Dragon. Grey metal covered the dinosaur's torso, and on the chest was a round green light. Two red cables ran from each side of the chest plate to a large double-barreled cannon mounted on the dinosaur's back. Its tail and legs were completely mechanical, and its lower jaw was made of solid metal.

"What kind of monster is that?" Leo wondered.

"This is a dinosaur that was resurrected and enhanced with the most sophisticated technology of the future!" Rex explained. "And with 3200 ATK, it's more than a match for that toy dragon of yours! Atomic T-Rex, attack Power Tool Dragon! Atomic Hellfire!"

The cybernetic dinosaur charged over and bit down hard on the mechanical dragon's torso, its teeth penetrating the metal. With a twist of its neck, Atomic T-Rex flung the dragon high into the air. Before Power Tool Dragon could hit the ground, the cybernetic dinosaur blasted it with a stream of green radioactive flames shot from its mouth, causing the dragon to explode in a blast of fire and smoke. Leo and Luna's life points dropped down to 7100.

"That's not all!" Rex continued. "When Atomic T-Rex destroys a monster, it deals damage equal to that monster's ATK!"

The cybernetic dinosaur blasted the twins with another stream of radioactive flames. Leo and Luna cried out as their life points fell to 4800.

"Not so tough now, are ya!" Weevil laughed gleefully.

"Now you little brats are gonna pay for mocking us!" rex declared. "By the time we're through, there won't even be enough of you left to scrape off the pavement!"

* * *

**Author's Note:** One of the things I had decided on during the planning stages of this story was that each of the major characters were going to have at least one duel. That said, I put a lot of thought into which classic duelists would be each character's opponent. I don't remember exactly what led me to decide having Leo and Luna duel Rex and Weevil, but it really seemed like a good match. Especially when one considers that both teams each have an offensive player and a defensive player.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	4. Twins of the Dragon Star

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix.

* * *

Chapter 3: Twins of the Dragon Star

Bruno's new device had detected the arrival of Paradox's newest assassins from the past. And as Leo and Luna had yet to return home, Yusei and Aki were very concerned. Right away, the couple rushed out with Bruno to the general vicinity of the distortion. Jack and Carly joined them on route to their destination. Crow and Raven showed up with Kiryu and Sect soon after.

"So was that gadget of yours able to tell us just who Paradox sent from the past to kill the twins?" Crow asked Bruno.

"I'm afraid not." Bruno answered. "The device can only detect when a portal in time is opened. It can't tell who comes through."

"Well that's just great!" Crow sarcastically replied. "For all we know, Leo and Luna could be up against two of the strongest duelists in history!"

"Please, as if any duelist from the past could be a real threat." Jack scoffed.

"Damn it Jack, will you take this seriously?" Crow complained. "For all we know, the twins could be fighting for their live right now!"

"Now, now. I'm sure all my darling Jack was trying to say is that he's sure the twins are doing okay." Carly assured him. "Right honey?"

"Whatever." Jack replied.

"Let's just focus on getting there as soon as possible." Yusei told everyone. "Right now, every second counts."

* * *

"I end my turn." Rex announced. "Better make your next turn count, punk. Otherwise, you and your sister are dead with Weevil's net turn."

Leo drew his next card and looked at his hand. From the start of the duel, his hand had been made up of monsters. And none of the monsters he had could stand a chance against Rex's cybernetic dinosaur. The card he had drawn however did provide a slight chance of being able to turn things around, but it was a gamble. Still, if he and Luna had any hope of surviving for at least one more turn, he had to take the chance.

"I summon Morphtronic Celfon in Attack Mode!" Leo announced.

A giant yellow cell phone materialized on the track. Parts of the phone quickly unfolded and expanded to change into a humanoid robot. The phone's screen had changed into large blades mounted atop the shoulders, and the buttons had become the front of the chest.

"I now activate Morphtronic Celfon's effect!" Leo announced. "While its in Attack Mode, Celfon can let me take a random number of cards from the top of my deck, and if any of those cards is a Morphtronic monster, I can summon that monster to the field!"

The buttons on Celfon's chest began to light up one by one. The light soon slowed and stopped on the button for three. Leo took the top three cards from his deck.

"I summon Morphtronic Remoten in Attack Mode!" Leo announced.

Appearing on the track was an oversized white MP3 player. Small arms and legs quickly popped out from the sides of the device, and two large green circles appeared on the device's black screen to form the eyes.

"I tune the level three Remoten into the level one Celfon to summon a level four Synchro monster in Defense Mode!" Leo announced.

Remoten's screen changed to show the word, "Tuning", before its body flashed orange and he changed into three rings of green light. The rings encircled Celfon and changed it into a single ball of white light.

"Docking wisdom with leadership to protect the world!" Leo chanted. "Synchro Summon! The Guardian of Justice, Morphtronic Commander Alpha Prime!"

The lights rotated and flashed into a horizontal column of white light. The light soon faded to reveal a semi truck with a blue cab and a large trailer driving alongside the duelists on the track. The word, "Morphtronic" was painted on the side of the trailer in large black letters.

"I now activate Alpha Prime's effect!" Leo announced. "Since he's in Defense Mode, I can use Alpha Prime to summon a Machine-type monster from my Graveyard in Defense Mode! Return to the field, Power Tool Dragon!"

The back of Alpha Prime's trailer opened up, and a large ball of gold light flew out onto the track. The light quickly took the form of Leo's mechanical dragon.

"I activate Power Tool Dragon's effect and add a random Equip Spell to my hand!" Leo announced. Leo looked at the card that popped out of his deck and smiled. "I equip Power Tool Dragon with Mist Body! This card prevents Power Tool Dragon from being destroyed in battle! That ends my turn!"

Weevil drew his next card. "I activate the Spell card, Pot of Greed! This lets me draw two more cards!" He looked at the two cards he had drawn and began to laugh. "You brats are finished now! I banish Insect Queen from my deck to summon Neo Insect Queen!"

Appearing on the track was a hideous female insect creature with a humanoid build. She had four arms and a fairly large abdomen. A red and silver breastplate covered her chest, and her arms and legs were covered in red and silver armor. The skin of her face and neck was yellow, and covering the top half of her face was a silver helmet with blue blades in place of antenna and red lenses with hexagonal segments covered her eyes. On the front of the helmet was a green hexagonal gem.

"Gross! What the heck is that thing?" Leo asked.

"You've heard of the monster, Insect Queen, right?" Weevil replied. "This is the Insect Queen after hundreds of years of evolution. I now activate her effect and summon another Insect monster from my deck in Defense Mode! Come forth, Insect Knight!"

Materializing on the track next to the insect queen was a humanoid beetle covered in a grey armored exoskeleton. In its hand, it carried a saber, and its eyes were bright red.

"One other thing I should mention is that Neo Insect Queen gains 200 ATK for each Insect in my Graveyard." Weevil revealed. "So her ATK goes up from 2600 to 3400!"

"Oh crud!" Leo exclaimed.

"Neo Insect Queen, destroy Sunlight Unicorn!" Weevil commanded. "Hive Mind Beam!"

The mutant insect fired a green beam of light from the gem on her forehead. The beam struck Sunlight Unicorn and shattered the mythical horse into bits of light. Leo and Luna's life points fell to 3900.

"I'm not done yet." Weevil continued. "Atomic T-Rex, destroy Morphtronic Alpha Prime! Atomic Hellfire!"

The cyborg dinosaur spewed out another stream of radioactive flames at the semi truck. But before the flames could hit, Power Tool Dragon flew in front of the blast. The attack turned the mechanical dragon into white mist, only for the mist to return to its original form.

"What! What the hell did you do?" Weevil demanded to know.

"I activated another one of Alpha Prime's effects." Leo explained. "When Alpha Prime is attacked while in Defense Mode, I can change the target of the attack to another monster on the field. And of course I chose Power Tool Dragon."

"Fine. I'll summon another Insect Knight in Defense Mode." An irritated Weevil announced. Another sword-wielding beetle warrior appeared on the track. "That ends my turn."

Luna drew her next card. "I activate a Spell card, Monster Reborn! With this card I bring Sunlight Unicorn back to the field!" The mythical horse appeared back on the track. "Next I summon a Tuner monster, Berry the Forest Swordsman!"

Appearing on the track was a porcupine with a scar on the left side of his face. In each hand he carried a small sword.

"I tune the level three Berry into the level four Sunlight Unicorn to Synchro Summon a level seven monster in Defense Mode!" Luna announced.

Berry flashed orange and changed into three green rings of light. The rings encircled the unicorn and changed him into four balls of white light.

"The holy light of protection, shine now and become eternal life!" Luna chanted. "Synchro Summon! A regale birth! Ancient Fairy Dragon!"

The lights flashed into a column of white energy. The energy faded to reveal a blue dragon with two long arms and a serpent-like body. She had long green hair and red eyes, along with a pair of ornate fins on the sides of her head. On her back was a pair of large fairy-like wings.

"That ends my turn." Luna announced.

Rex drew his next card. "Hey Weevil, these kids are starting to get on my nerves."

"I know. This wall of monsters they have is a real nuisance." Weevil agreed.

"Then it's a good thing I've got a way around them." Rex replied. "I activate the effect of Atomic T-Rex! By discarding a Dinosaur monster, I inflict damage equal to that monster's ATK! And the monster I discard is Ultimate Tyranno!"

Atomic T-Rex aimed its cannons at the twins and fired two intense beams of green energy. Leo and Luna cried out as their life points plummeted to 900.

"Great idea, Rex!" Weevil giggled.

"Yeah, now we don't even have to bother with attacking." Rex replied. "All we have to do is wait, and on my next turn I'll discard another Dinosaur and fry those two brats! For now I'll just set a card on the field and end my turn."

Before Leo could draw his next card, he and Luna noticed another group of D-Wheels approaching from behind. In moments, they could clearly see that it was Yusei and the others.

"Are you guys okay?" Yusei asked the twins.

"Well, well. It seems we now have some spectators." Weevil observed.

"Who the hell are you guys?" Yusei demanded to know.

"We're the most terrifying duelists in history!" Weevil declared.

"Tremble before me, the king of all dinosaurs! Rex Raptor!" the dinosaur duelist announced.

"And cower before me, the master of all insects! Weevil Underwood!" the insect duelist announced.

"Never heard of you." Yusei replied, causing Weevil and Rex to almost fall off their D-Wheels. "Has anyone ever heard of these guys?"

"I've certainly never heard of them." Aki answered.

"I've read a lot of articles about old duelists over the years, and these two don't ring a bell." Carly replied.

"I don't know who that Weevil chump thinks he is, but I'm the master of all insects." Sect declared.

"In your dreams!" Weevil shot back.

"I've just done a quick check of all historical records." Bruno reported. "The only mention I can find of a Weevil Underwood was in an article about Yugi Muto. Apparently he was the first opponent Yugi defeated in the Duelist Kingdom tournament."

"And?" Yusei asked.

"And that's it." Bruno replied. "He's only in one sentence."

"WHAT?" Weevil protested. "How can this be? I was once the regional duel champion of Japan!"

"What about that dinosaur guy?" Crow asked.

"Well, the only mention I can find of a duelist named Rex Raptor is in an article about the legendary duelist, Joey Wheeler." Bruno answered. "He's on a list of opponents defeated by Joey in Duelist Kingdom. Beyond that, there' no mention of him."

"What the hell?" Rex protested. "That chump is considered a legend, and I'm not even mentioned at all?"

"Wow, Duelist Kingdom is like ancient history." Carly remarked. "I guess it's no wonder there's no mention of these two."

"Especially if they lost." Jack added. "Nobody remembers the losers."

"Yeah? Well why don't you idiots forget about the past and take a good look at the field!" Rex told them. "In case you haven't noticed, your little friends are in real trouble."

"He's right! The twins are almost out of life points." Kiryu observed.

"That's right. And because our two strongest monsters are on the field, those brats don't stand a chance." Weevil gloated.

"That's where you're wrong!" Yusei declared. "Leo and Luna can still beat you two! Leo, show them!"

"You got it, Yusei!" Leo nodded as he drew his next card. "I switch Morphtronic Commander Alpha Prime to Attack Mode!"

The trailer from Alpha Prime detached and vanished from the track. The semi truck cab then unfolded and changed into a human-shaped robot. The helmet on his head was yellow with light-blue goggles and a grey faceplate.

"I now activate Alpha Prime's other effect!" Leo announced. "While he's in Attack Mode, Alpha Prime lets me add a Morphtronic monster to my hand!"

Alpha Prime put a finger to the side of his helmet and a card popped out near the bottom of Leo's deck. Leo added the card to his hand.

"I summon Morphtronic Lantron in Attack Mode!" Leo announced.

A giant flashlight appeared on the track and unfolded into a robot. The light of the machine composed the center of the robot's chest.

"I tune the level one Lantron into the level seven Power Tool Dragon for a level eight Synchro Summon!" Leo announced.

The on the robot's chest flashed twice and Lantron changed into a single ring of green light. The ring of light then encircled Power Tool Dragon.

"The courage and power to protect the future of the planet is a revolution!" Leo chanted. "Synchro Summon! Evolve, Life Stream Dragon!"

The ring shrank down and went into Power Tool Dragon's body. The mechanical dragon's armor cracked and fell away to reveal a flesh and blood dragon covered in gold scales. Mounted on its left forearm was a red growth with a scalpel-like blade attached to it.

"Since I summoned Life Stream Dragon, our life points go back up to 4000!" Leo announced.

"Big deal." Rex scoffed. "You may have gotten some life points back and that toy dragon of yours may be a real boy now, but you brats still don't stand a chance."

"Luna, hold on tight." Leo told her.

"Okay." Luna replied before squeezing onto Leo's midsection.

Leo took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and began to accelerate their D-Wheel. As the twins gained speed, a stream of pinkish-red energy began to form around them.

"Hey, what the hell's going on?" Rex demanded to know.

"Yusei, is Leo…?" Aki suddenly realized.

"Yeah." Yusei confirmed. "Let's see if he can pull it off."

"The power of hope is an eternal source of light for the future!" Leo chanted. "Accel Synchro!"

Suddenly the twins took off in a streak of light as Life Stream Dragon changed into eight green rings of light that encircled Alpha Prime. In seconds Leo and Luna had vanished from the track.

"Wh-where did they?" Weevil began to ask.

Yusei and the others quickly cleared a path as the streak of light came up from behind. The twins emerged from the light with Ancient Fairy Dragon as well as a completely new dragon. This dragon was gold and twice the size of Life Stream Dragon. It had six wings covered in gold feathers and two whiskers on its snout. Burning in the center of the dragon's chest was what looked like a small golden star.

"Be born, Life Star Dragon!" Leo called out.

"Whoa! When did Leo learn how to do that?" Crow wondered.

"I've been showing him a thing or two on the track." Yusei answered.

"You okay Luna?" Leo asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine." A slightly frazzled Luna answered. "That was… really fast."

"Okay you losers," Leo said to Rex and Weevil, "I activate Life Star Dragon's effect! By returning a card in my hand to my deck, I can add an Equip Spell to my hand! Next I equip Life Star Dragon with Junk Barrage!" The dragon began to glow with a green aura. "Oh and by the way, Life Star Dragon gains 500 ATK for each Equip Spell in my Graveyard. Which means right now his ATK goes up from 3400 to 4400!"

"What!" Weevil and Rex exclaimed together.

"I switch Ancient Fairy Dragon to Attack Mode!" Leo announced. "And now, Life Star Dragon attacks Atomic T-Rex! Life Force Stream!"

The golden dragon reared back its head and blasted Atomic T-Rex with a stream of gold light. The cybernetic dinosaur exploded and shattered apart, dropping Rex and Weevil's life points to 3300.

That's not all!" Leo continued. "Because Life Star Dragon was equipped with Junk Barrage, you guys take damage equal to half of Atomic' T-Rex's ATK!"

Suddenly pieces of flaming space junk fell from the sky and struck Weevil and Rex, causing an explosion of smoke and flame. The two duelists emerged from the strike unharmed, but their life points had fallen to 1700.

"You punks are gonna get it now!" Rex declared. "I activate my Trap, Jurassic Revenge! When one of my Dinosaur monsters is destroyed in battle, this card deals damage equal to that monster's ATK!"

A stream of fire shot from the large Trap card. But instead of hitting the twins, the fire was drawn into the star burning in the center of Life Star Dragon's chest.

"Hey, what gives?" Rex demanded to know.

"Sorry dude, but while Life Star Dragon is on the field, effect damage to players is negated." Leo explained. "Instead, the player who would've taken damage gains 1000 life points instead. Which means Luna and I now have 5000 life points."

"You little punk!" Rex cursed.

"I now activate another one of Life Star Dragon's effects!" Leo announced. "Since he destroyed a monster in battle this turn, I can send one of his Equip Spells to the Graveyard to let him attack again this turn!"

"Oh crap! And because that damn dragon gains power for every Equip card in your Graveyard…" Rex suddenly realized.

"Yep, Life Star Dragon's ATK jumps to 4900!" Leo confirmed. "Life Star Dragon, blow away Neo Insect Queen! Life Force Stream!"

The green aura around Life Star Dragon shattered before he reared back his head and fired another blast at the Insect Queen. But before the attack could hit, one of the Insect Knights jumped in front of the blast and was destroyed. Neo Insect Queen was unharmed, though Rex and Weevil's life points had fallen to 400.

"Hey, what happened?" Leo demanded to know.

"Insects will do anything to protect their queen." Weevil snickered. "Whenever Neo Insect Queen would be destroyed, I can send another Insect to the Graveyard instead. And since there's another Insect in the Graveyard, Neo Insect Queen's ATK rises to 3600!"

"Dang! Looks like I screwed up." Leo observed.

"Don't worry about it Leo. We still have a pretty big advantage." Luna pointed out.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Leo agreed. "I'll end my turn there."

"You're going to regret your eagerness, you little brat." Weevil declared as he drew another card. "I activate Neo Insect Queen's effect and summon another Insect Knight to the field in Defense Mode!" A third bug warrior appeared on the track. "And now I equip Neo Insect Queen with the Spell card, Berserker Mode!"

Neo Insect Queen's eyes suddenly began to glow. A pair of transparent multicolored wings sprouted from her back.

"Since she's equipped with Berserker Mode, Neo Insect Queen gains 1000 ATK." Weevil explained. "Plus when she destroys a monster in battle, she deals damage equal to that monster's ATK! Neo Insect Queen, destroy Ancient Fairy Dragon! Hive Mind Beam!"

"I activate Life Star Dragon's effect!" Leo quickly announced. "When an opponent's monster declares an attack, I can banish Life Star Dragon from the field until the end of the turn to stop that attack!"

Neo Insect Queen fired another beam from her helmet. But before it could strike, Life Star Dragon vanished and created a golden pillar of light that blocked the beam from striking.

Despite his attack being blocked, Weevil began to laugh madly. "You FOOL! Now you've made things even worse for yourselves! I activate another one of Berserker Mode's effects!"

Suddenly Neo Insect Queen grabbed one of the Insect Knights by the neck and lifted it up. The queen's mouth opened extremely wide and bit the knight's head off. The twins, Yusei, and the others all watched in horror as Neo Insect Queen slowly devoured the knight, piece by piece, making the most horrid crunching noises during the process.

"Oh man! That was all kinds of wrong!" Crow declared as he tried to keep himself from throwing up.

"I'm an Insect duelist too, and even I think that was sick." Sect admitted.

"Now that Neo Insect Queen has eaten one of her subjects, Berserker Mode allows her to attack again." Weevil revealed. "And since this effect was used, my queen doesn't have to bother with that pathetic dragon of yours. Because now she can attack directly!"

"What!" Yusei exclaimed.

"Neo Insect Queen, attack those brats with Hive Mind Beam!" Weevil commanded.

Neo Insect Queen fired another beam from the gem on her helmet. Leo turned their D-Wheel so that he would be the only one to take the hit. By the time it had ended, the twins' life points had dropped to 200.

"You okay Luna?" Leo asked.

"I'm fine, but are you?" Luna replied.

"I'm okay. Don't worry about me." Leo assured her.

"There's more!" Weevil continued. "When Neo Insect Queen does a direct attack with Berserker Mode, I gain life points equal to that damage you took. Which means Rex and I now have 5200 life points!"

"Now things are even worse than before." A very concerned Raven observed. "Not only are Luna and Leo running out of life points, they can't block any more of the Neo Insect Queen's attacks."

"They need to turn things back around on the next turn." Crow added. "Otherwise the twins won't stand a chance."

"I'll end my turn there." Weevil announced. With the end of his turn, Life Star Dragon reappeared on the track. "You might as well give up. I'll admit that you brats put up a good fight, but you don't stand a chance of winning now. This duel is as good as our's!"

"My brother and I will never give up!" Luna declared. "Things may look bad right now, but Leo and I will both keep fighting until we win!"

Suddenly Luna's dragon mark began to glow and the top card of her deck glowed red. Luna drew the card from her deck. "I activate the Spell card, Festival Preparation! By sending a Spell card from my hand to the Graveyard, I can add a Special pair of cards to my hand!"

"Hey Raven, is Luna doing what I think she is?" Crow asked.

"I think so." Raven replied.

"I activate the Ritual Spell, Rite of Eternal Spring!" Luna announced. "Normally I'd have to sacrifice monsters who's levels equal five or more. But Rite of Eternal Spring also lets me banish a Light monster from my Graveyard as the whole tribute. So I now banish Mystical Elf to summon the Ritual Tuner, Dragon Fairy Priestess!"

Luna's elf reappeared on the field and was suddenly enveloped in a twister of flower petals. The twister soon died down to reveal a young-looking woman with blue skin and long green hair that went past her waist. She had on white robes, and on her back was a set of pink fairy wings. Atop her head was a large red headdress in the image of the Crimson Dragon's head.

"When Dragon Fairy Priestess is summoned, I can negate the effect's of an opponent's monster until the end of the turn!" Luna announced. "And the monster I choose is Neo Insect Queen!"

The fairy priestess raised her arms forward and shot a ball of red light from her hands. The ball hit Neo Insect Queen in the chest and left the seal of the Crimson Dragon. Neo Insect Queen then began to crackle with red electricity.

"Sweet! Now Neo Insect Queen's lost most of her extra ATK!" Sect observed.

"Since Dragon Fairy Priestess used her effect, my brother and I gain life points equal to Neo Insect Queen's original ATK!" Luna announced. The fairy priestess flapped her wings and bombarded the twins with particles of light, raising their life points to 2800. "I now tune the level five Dragon Fairy Priestess into the level seven Ancient Fairy Dragon for a level twelve Synchro Summon!"

Dragon Fairy Priestess changed into five rings of crimson light. The rings encircled Ancient Fairy Dragon and transformed her into seven balls of white light.

"The eternal light of creation, shine now and bring forth a new world!" Luna chanted. "Primal Synchro! A glorious birth, Primal Fairy Dragon!"

The lights flashed and ignited into a pillar of crimson fire. In moments the flames died down to reveal a larger blue dragon with long arms and a serpent-like body. On her back was a pair of white-feathered wings that shined with an unearthly glow. She had long pink hair and a pair of golden wing-shaped ornaments on the sides of her head. Her torso was covered in golden armor that had a blue gemstone in the center of the chest plate.

"When Primal Fairy Dragon is Synchro Summoned, I can destroy all Spell and Trap cards on the field!" Luna announced. "Land Purification!"

Primal Fairy Dragon roared and fired a beam of golden light from the gem on her chest armor down at the track. The beam enveloped the entire area in a blinding explosion of light. When the light cleared, a pristine forest with trees that almost blocked out the sky had replaced the insect city that had been created by Weevil's Field Spell.

"What's going on?" Weevil asked.

"Since my card destroyed the Track Field Spell you played, I was able to play one of my own, Enchanted Forest." Luna explained. "By the way, since Primal Fairy Dragon's effect destroyed your two Spell cards, Leo and I gain 500 life points for each one. And Primal Fairy Dragon gains 500 ATK for each of those cards too, which means her ATK is now 3600."

"I think they've almost got this." Carly said encouragingly.

"I now activate Primal Fairy Dragon's other effect and add a Spell card to my hand!" Luna announced. "Then I activate once of the effects of Enchanted Forest! Once per turn, I can add a Spell card from my Graveyard to my hand. And now I'll equip Primal Fairy Dragon with the Spell I just returned to my hand, Horn of the Unicorn!"

A golden horn sprouted from Primal Fairy Dragon's forehead, raising her ATK to 4300. Suddenly a small butterfly made of multicolored light flew onto the track and began to flutter around Weevil's monsters.

"Hey! What the hell's with that little bug that's flying around the track?" Rex demanded to know.

"That's a Fairy Light Counter." Luna explained. "Each time I play a Spell card, one of those counters is placed on Enchanted Forest. And all my opponent's monsters lose 200 ATK for each Fairy Light Counter there is."

"Wait, but that means…" Weevil suddenly realized.

"Uh-huh, your Insect Queen just got weaker." Luna confirmed. "I activate the Spell card I added to my hand with Primal Fairy Dragon's effect, Dragon Star Unity! When there are two Dragon-type Synchro monsters on my side of the field, I can add the ATK of one of those dragons to the other! And I choose to add Life Star Dragon's ATK to Primal Fairy's!"

Both dragons roared and glowed with a crimson aura. An instant later, another butterfly of light began to flutter around Weevil's monsters.

"I attack Neo Insect Queen with Primal Fairy Dragon!" Luna announced.

"Then I'm activating the effect of Kamikaze Bee from my hand!" Weevil quickly announced. "By discarding Kamikaze Bee when one of my Insects is attacked, I can destroy the attacking monster!"

A giant bee suddenly flew down onto the track and rammed full speed into Primal Fairy Dragon, creating a large explosion. But when the smoke cleared, the ancient dragon was still on the track.

"What! How is that dragon not dead?" Weevil demanded to know.

"Once per turn, Enchanted Forest lets me prevent a Light monster I control from being destroyed by a card effect by banishing a Spell card from my Graveyard." Luna explained. "Primal Fairy, destroy Neo Insect Queen! Sunshine Cannon!"

Primal Fairy Dragon reared back her head and blasted Neo Insect Queen with an intense beam of sunlight. The Insect Queen was vaporized by the blast and the entire track was enveloped in a blinding light. When the light faded, the twins' dragons had vanished and the forest had changed back into the city of Neo Domino. Weevil and Rex's life points were at zero and both of them were out cold. Before anyone could make a move though, the two duelists from the past vanished in a flash of pink light.

"What the heck just happened?" Crow wondered.

"It appears I have failed once again." A voice spoke. Yusei and the others looked ahead on the track to see Paradox before them on his D-Wheel.

""So you're this Paradox I've heard so much about." Jack observed. "If those are the best duelists from the past you can send after us, than you and Z-one don't stand a chance."

"I would've thought that those two imbeciles could've defeated a pair of children." Paradox replied with a scowl. "Those two young Signers were more powerful than I thought."

"Paradox, don't ever underestimate any of us!" Yusei warned. "We're all strong enough to beat you or anyone you and Z-one send after us."

"I'll keep that in mind, Yusei." Paradox replied.

"Please Paradox, you and Z-one must stop this!" Bruno begged. "There's a better way to save the future than destroying Neo Domino!"

"I will not hear the words of a naïve traitor like you, Antinomy." Paradox coldly replied. "As far as I'm concerned, we are enemies now." And with that, he vanished in a flash of pink light.

"Leo, Luna, you two okay?" Aki asked.

"Yeah. Just a little worn out." Luna replied.

"I could use a burger or something." Leo added.

"Why don't we all go out for a bite to eat then?" Yusei suggested. "You two certainly earned it."

* * *

Paradox entered the endless white room aboard the Arc Cradle with Misty and Sherry. Z-one hovered in the center of the room and turned to face them.

"It seems you made a grave miscalculation, Paradox." Z-one told him. "The twins, Leo and Luna, are no ordinary children. Sending a pair of such minor duelists to destroy them was a mistake."

"I will not make such an error again, my lord." Paradox assured him.

"However, this day was far from a loss." Z-one continued. "Though your assassins were defeated, we are a great deal closer to our ultimate goal."

"Excuse me, but how the hell does losing get us closer to changing the future?" Sherry cut in.

"If you were not such a simpleton, I would explain it to you." Z-one replied in a very bitter and angry tone, causing Sherry to gasp. "But… understand that eliminating the Signers is not our primary goal. These duels help to serve another purpose."

"And I will make sure that purpose is fulfilled." Paradox assured Z-one. "Not even the Signers will stand in my way."

* * *

**Author's Note:** This chapter ended up being a tad longer than I thought it'd be. There was a lot of action in those last few turns. As a whole, this duel was sort of a challenge to write. Partly because for awhile I was drawing a blank for the evolved forms of Ancient Fairy Dragon and Life Stream Dragon. But now, all the Signer Dragons have at least one evolved forms in this AU. Another thing that made things difficult was that while writing this chapter I found that I had made a few mathematical errors in the duel outline. It was actually fairly easy to correct though, but I'm glad I realized my mistake because it was actually a pretty big error.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	5. The Blackwing Hunter

**Author's Note:** I ended up doing a major rethink of these next two chapters. I had mentioned before that I had more or less settled on the match ups for the duels in this story, but in one of the last reviews I had a suggestion about which classic duelist one of the characters should go up against. And the more I thought about it, the more it seemed like a better idea than what I had originally planned.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix.

* * *

Chapter 4: The Blackwing Hunter

Misty wandered through the halls of the Arc Cradle looking for Z-one. The fortress was still something of a maze to her, and Z-one was often hard to find. Sometimes he would be in the endless white room that seemed to serve as his private quarters. Other times the mysterious cyborg would show up in rooms Misty never would've expected, like the break room that she and Sherry would often use. Since arriving aboard the Arc Cradle, Misty typically avoided going out of her way to find Z-one. Her encounters with him were usually by accident. But this time there was something she needed to ask the cyborg.

Earlier that evening, Misty and Sherry encountered Z-one in the break room by chance. Sherry ended up making a remark to Z-one that caused him to become angry, angrier than someone would expect. Misty had recalled that Z-one had mentioned having a relationship with the Sherry from his time, and she felt like she had to know what the nature of that relationship was. She wanted to know why Z-one seemed to hate Sherry so much. Partly out of her own curiosity, and partly to explain to Sherry so she wouldn't inadvertently enrage Z-one enough to kill her. After what seemed like almost an hour of searching, Misty finally found Z-one alone in a dark room that looked like a laboratory.

Z-one noticed Misty's arrival and turned to face her. "What is it? Are you lost again?"

"Forgive my intrusion, Lord Z-one," Misty nervously began, "but I'd to know… why is it that you hate Sherry so much? What did the Sherry of your time do to make you so angry?"

"What does it matter?" Z-one indifferently asked.

"Well… I'm just trying to understand what the other Sherry did to make you hate the Sherry I know so much." Misty explained.

"I see." Z-one replied. "…The relationship I had with the Sherry LeBlanc of my time was… political. Through circumstances that I foolishly thought were beyond my control, we were forced together by the expectations of others. I suppose we had a certain fondness for one another. But we quickly grew to hate each other over time."

"Wait, by relationship… do you mean marriage?" a surprised Misty asked.

"…I have said enough." Z-one coldly replied.

"I see…" Misty responded. "Well, whatever your relationship with the other Sherry was, having my Sherry here must bring back a lot of painful memories for you."

"My emotions are of little importance." Z-one told her. "To change the fate of the human race, I must do whatever is necessary."

At that moment, Paradox entered the lab. "Forgive the intrusion, my lord. I hope I'm not interrupting anything."

"Not at all." Z-one assured him. "What is it, Paradox?"

"I have returned with duelists from two different eras." Paradox reported. "One has already been programmed as an assassin and deployed in Neo Domino. Her target is Crow Hogan."

"A formidable opponent. I trust that you are not underestimating him like you did the twin Signers." Z-one assumed.

"I assure you, Lord Z-one. I do not make the same mistake twice." Paradox confirmed. "Not only is this woman one of the most skilled duelists in history, the cards I have put in her deck makes her the perfect weapon to destroy Crow Hogan's Blackwing monsters."

"A Blackwing hunter, how interesting." Z-one remarked. "What of the other duelist you brought back?"

"Her name is Alexis Rhodes. She is still aboard the Arc Cradle in stasis." Paradox reported. "I thought we could program her to guard one of the three gears, should the worst happen."

"Very well." Z-one agreed. "I will leave the matter in your hands."

* * *

A fairly uneventful day had gone by since Leo and Luna's duel with Rex Raptor and Weevil Underwood. Late that evening, Aki was sitting in bed and reading a book. Not one of the textbooks she had been studying to get into medical school, but a novel that Carly had recommended to her a few weeks before, a thrilling murder mystery called _Death Sometimes Kills Twice_. Aki's attention was finally torn away from the book when Yusei finally entered the room. He sighed as he sat down on the side of the bed.

"Were you able to fix or power up whatever it was you were working on?" Aki asked.

"Yeah, not much more work I can do tonight." Yusei answered as he took off his boots.

"So are you going to tell me what's been bugging you?" Aki asked.

"What makes you think that something's bugging me?" Yusei replied.

"Yusei, I've known you long enough to notice that when something's bothering you, you usually spend half the night in the garage tinkering with something." Aki pointed out. "Besides, it's written all over your face. So what's up?"

"…I'm a little worried about who Paradox might send after us next." Yusei admitted with a sigh. "I can't help but feel like we've been lucky so far. I beat Zane Truesdale with the help of the Crimson Dragon, and those two duelists the twins faced weren't really all that powerful, even with the cards Paradox gave them. The next time, Paradox might send someone really strong like Yugi Muto or Jaden Yuki after us. I'm not sure I any of us could win against powerful legends like them."

"Yusei, it doesn't matter who Paradox sends after us next. Whoever we wind up facing we'll beat them." Aki said encouragingly. "I know that because we've got you leading us. And you're as strong as any of those duelists. So cheer up, okay?"

"Yeah, okay." Yusei replied with a smile.

"Now then, why don't you stop worrying about the future and focus all your attention on me." Aki suggested in a rather seductive tone before leaning over and kissing Yusei on the neck.

"That sounds like the best idea I've heard all day." Yusei smirked.

* * *

Crow drove along the bridge to Satellite after completing another late night delivery. Since Satellite had become a much nicer place to live, much of Crow's Blackbird Gang had disbanded so some of its members could leave and follow their own dreams for the future. Those who had remained helped Crow turn the gang into a delivery service. He needed all the cash he could get, as Raven had decided to enter medical school with Aki. Of course Raven had her own part time job to help with the funds for that goal, but every cent the two of them could get helped.

Just as Crow was half way across the bridge, he saw another D-Wheel parked in his path. The cycle was purple and the front end was shaped like the head of a bird. The rider was a woman with long blonde hair who had on a purple leather jacket with a black corset and miniskirt, along with purple knee-high boots and helmet. Crow parked his D-Wheel before the mysterious rider, and as he looked at her face with the light from his headlights, he found that he recognized her from pictures he had seen.

"You Crow Hogan?" the woman asked.

"Crud, you're Mai Valentine, aren't you?" Crow sighed, recalling her as one of the legendary duelists of Duelist Kingdom and Battle City. "Let me guess, Paradox sent you after me. Right?"

"That's right, kid." Mai confirmed. "And you're not going anywhere until we duel."

"Do you have any idea how late it is?" Crow complained. "Fine, let's get this over with."

With that, Crow and Mai took off. Detecting the announcement of a duel, the highway system redirected the two onto an available duel lane. Mai made it onto the bridge a split second before Crow did.

"Track Field, activate!" Mai called out. "Harpies' Hunting Ground!"

The starlit night sky above had suddenly been replaced by a dim midday sky covered with thick grey clouds. The open expanse of ocean changed into an endless grey mountain range.

"I set one card on the field." Mai announced. "Then I summon Harpie's Brother in Attack Mode!"

Flying down onto the track was a humanoid creature with large red wings and black hair. He had on what looked like a red mask that covered the top half of his face.

"That ends my turn!" Mai announced.

"Harpies' Hunting Ground. That's a pretty good Field Spell." Crow admitted as he drew his first card. "Slight problem for you though, this field gives all Winged Beast monsters a 200 point boost. And my deck is full of birds!"

"Guess we're pretty evenly matched then, huh?" Mai observed.

"Yeah, this should be a pretty good show." Crow agreed. "Now, since your Harpie's Brother has 2000 ATK, I can Special Summon Blackwing- Sharnga the Waning Moon!"

Flying onto the track was a bird that looked like a cross between an owl and a blackbird. It had on a sort of turban and carried a bow and a quiver of arrows.

"Since I have a Blackwing monster on the field, I also Special Summon Blackwing- Gladius the Midnight Sun!" Crow announced.

Flying down onto the field was a humanoid blackbird clad in silver armor. On the left side of its face around its eye was a cross-shaped scar.

"I tune the level two Sharnga into the level three Gladius for a level five Synchro Summon!" Crow announced.

Sharnga flashed orange and changed into two green rings of light. The lights encircled Gladius and transformed the bird warrior into three white stars.

"Razor sharp winds become the storm to tear though the darkness!" Crow chanted. "Synchro Summon! The shining dark knight, Blackwing-Gram the Shining Star!"

The lights flashed and became a twister of black wind. The wind soon died down to reveal a large humanoid blackbird dressed like a medieval knight clad in red and silver armor. In his right hand he carried a large sword with a crossguard in the shape of a talon.

"Not bad." Mai admitted.

"I'm not done yet!" Crow continued. "I activate Gram's effect and Special Summon another Blackwing from my hand! Come out, Blackwing-Damascus the Polar Knight!"

Flying down onto the track was a small humanoid blackbird with a muscular chest. In his hand held short silver sword.

"And for my Normal Summon, I summon Blackwing- Pinaka the Waxing Moon!" Crow announced.

Flying down to the track was a small bipedal blackbird with a large yellow beak wearing a turban and vest. With his wings, he held a bow and a feather-shaped arrow.

"I tune the level three Pinaka into the level three Damascus for a level six Synchro Summon!" Crow announced.

Pinaka flashed orange and changed into three green energy rings. The rings encircled Damascus and transformed him into three balls of white light.

"Swirling dark winds become the storm to tear through all barriers!" Crow chanted. "Synchro Summon! Take flight, Blackwing Armed Wing!"

The lights flashed and became another twister of black wind. The wind died down to reveal another humanoid bird clad in black armor. On his head was a large mass of orange feathers that went back like hair, and in his hands was a rifle with a bayonet.

"Armed Wing, attack Harpie's Brother!" Crow commanded.

"I activate my Trap, Empress Wind!" Mai quickly announced.

Suddenly a tick twister of green wind appeared on the track and blew back Crow's two monsters. The force of the gale was so strong that it almost knocked Crow's D-Wheel off the track. After a few moments, the wind finally died down and Crow found that his life points had dropped down to 3000. Even more surprising was that a completely different monster had replaced Harpie's Brother. One that Crow had never seen before.

The new creature was a woman with long silver hair and light blue skin. She had large talons for hands and feet and her arms were a large pair of wings. The feathers of the right wing were black, while the feathers of the left wing were white. On her legs she wore purple tights and her chest was covered in armor that was white with black trim on the right side of the abdominal section and black with white trim on the left. The sections of the breastplate had the opposite color scheme. On her upper arms she had on golden bands lined with spikes, and in her left claw she held a whip. Covering the top half of her face was a mask with red lenses that was black on the right side and black on the left.

"What the hell just happened?" Crow wondered.

"The effect of Empress Wind let me tribute my Harpie's Brother to stop your attack and summon one of my newest monsters, Harpie Empress!" Mai explained. "But that's not all, Empress Wind also deals 500 points of damage to my opponent equal to the number of Winged Beast monsters they have on the field."

"Yeah? Well even with the Field Spell, your empress only has 2300 ATK, which is still a hundred points weaker than Gram's!" Crow pointed out.

"ATK points aren't everything, you know." Mai smirked.

"Gram, attack Harpie Empress with Crescent Slice!" Crow commanded. But despite his command, Gram remained where he was. "Hey, what gives?"

"Harpie Empress isn't just the supreme ruler of the Harpies, all birds bow to her will." Mai explained. "Because of her aura, charm, and charisma, no other Winged Beast can even raise a wing against her."

Crow took a close look at Gram. The bird knight's expression was blank, as if he was mesmerized by the Harpie Empress's appearance.

"Now what're you gonna do, bird boy?" Mai teased.

"Damn!" Crow cursed. "I'll set a card on the field and end my turn!"

Mai grinned as she drew her next card. "This is going to be fun."

* * *

Bruno rushed up the stairs of the Fudo mansion as fast as his legs would carry him. He frantically came to Yusei and Aki's room and pounded furiously on the door. After a moment, the door opened a crack by Yusei. Bruno could see that Yusei was wearing only a blue robe.

"Oh, did I come at a bad time?" Bruno asked, realizing the implication of the robe.

"Not as bad as if you had come like a minute sooner." Yusei admitted. "What is it?"

"I just detected another temporal distortion." Bruno explained. "Looks like Paradox just sent another assassin."

"Have you called the others?" Yusei asked.

"I've already spoken to Raven. She says Crow hasn't come home yet." Bruno revealed. "It's a safe bet that whoever Paradox sent has gone after Crow."

"Then we better find Crow before it's too late." Yusei decided.

* * *

"I banish Harpie's Pet Dragon from my deck to summon Malefic Harpie's Pet Dragon!" Mai announced.

Flying down onto the track was a large orange dragon with two large blades on its arms in the place of wings. The blade of the right arm was black, while the blade on the left was white. On its torso it wore armor that was white on the right side and black on the left. In the center of the chest plate was a large green diamond. Around the dragon's neck was a black metal collar with a long black chain attacked. On the dragon's face was a mask that was black on the right side and white on the left, and mounted on the center was a large green feather.

"Oh crap!" Crow cursed. "Yusei faced a monster like that when he dueled Zane Truesdale!"

"Next I summon Harpie Lady 1!" Mai announced.

Flying onto the field was a monster that looked like a woman with blue skin and long red hair. She had on a rather revealing blue garment and her hands and feet were large yellow talons. Her arms were a pair of large wings with green feathers.

"Thanks to the effect of Harpies' Hunting Ground, I can destroy a Spell or Trap card on the field when I summon a Harpie!" Mai announced. "So say goodbye to whatever Trap you were planning to use to stop me!"

The Harpie Lady flapped her wings and created a gust of wind that blew at Crow. The wind gust hit the large Trap that Crow had set on the track and shattered it to bits.

"Because Harpie Lady 1 is on the field, all Wind monsters gain 300 extra ATK." Mai revealed. "Which means the ATK of my Harpie Empress is now 2600. But that's not all. Malefic Harpie's Pet Dragon also gains 500 ATK for every other Harpie monster on the field. So thanks to that, and the boost from Harpie Lady 1, his ATK is now 3800."

"Great!" Crow sarcastically remarked.

"I now activate the effect of Harpie Empress!" Mai announced. "Blackwing Armed Wing, obey my command and come to me!"

The Harpie Empress grinned as she lashed Armed Wing in the chest with her whip. Armed Wing eagerly went over to fly alongside Mai and her monsters.

"Hey, what gives?" Crow complained.

"I told you before, Harpie Empress is the undisputed ruler of all birds." Mai reminded her. "All Winged Beast monsters are compelled to obey her will. And once per turn, I can use that power to take control of a Winged Beast monster my opponent controls until the end of the turn."

"Great, so now you're going to tear me apart with all those monsters." Crow realized as he went a little pale.

"Oh don't worry, I can only attack with Malefic Harpie's Pet Dragon because of his effect." Mai revealed. "But that's just fine. My Harpies are perfectly content to let their loyal servant do all the work. Besides, killing you in one turn wouldn't be any fun."

"So if you can only attack with your dragon, what was the point of taking control of Armed Wing?" Crow asked.

"Because my Pet Dragon has another effect." Mai revealed. "Once per turn, I can sacrifice a Winged Beast monster to deal damage equal to half that monster's ATK. And the monster I choose is your Blackwing Armed Wing!"

Armed Wing suddenly turned into a green light and went inside the gem in the Pet Dragon's armor. The dragon opened his mouth and blasted Crow with a stream of green energy. Crow cried out as his life points went down to 1750.

"Unfortunately for me, my Pet Dragon can't attack the turn he uses his effect." Mai revealed. "So that ends my turn. Your move, bird boy."

* * *

Yusei, Aki, Bruno, and the twins all rushed out towards the area where Bruno had detected the temporal distortion. Jack and Carly met up with the group less than half way to their destination.

"So, just what has birdbrain gotten himself into this late in the evening?" Jack complained.

"You should take this a little more seriously, Jack." Yusei told him. "For all we know, Crow could be in real trouble right now."

"Please, if the last three duelists Paradox sent after us were any indication, even someone like Crow can handle them." Jack scoffed.

"Hey! I'm picking up another temporal distortion!" Bruno interrupted as he looked at monitor of his D-Wheel.

"Another one? Where?" a surprised Yusei asked.

"It's not too far away from where we are now, but too far away from where we're headed." Bruno reported.

"Looks like Paradox has decided to give us more trouble." Yusei assumed.

* * *

Phillip Muntz felt like he was on top of the world that evening. Earlier that afternoon, he had won a small contest where he had received a free D-Wheel. He had been building a D-Wheel of his own from scratch for the past few months, but it was still far from finished and the parts he still needed were a little pricey. So winning a D-Wheel for free had been a godsend. Soon he would be able to become a professional Turbo Duelist.

That evening as he was on his way home after test-driving the new red cycle, he felt as if nothing could go wrong. Then in the middle of the street he saw a strange pink vortex appear in the air. Seeing the strange phenomenon, Phillip brought his D-Wheel to a stop. As he looked, two things suddenly popped out of the vortex before is vanished just as soon as it appeared. One of the objects was a somewhat large cat with orange fur and brown stripes. The other object was a person, who had fallen on his butt upon exiting the vortex.

The person was a young man with somewhat shaggy brown hair that reminded Phillip somewhat of the Duel Monster, Kuriboh. He was wearing a red jacket with white sections near the top, along with a black shirt, blue jeans, and a pair of red and black sneakers. On his left arm he had on a distinct silver and red duel disk, and he had a red duffle bag slung over his left shoulder. Phillip couldn't help but feel like he had seen the young man somewhere before, but he couldn't quite place him.

"Oh man! That was a rough ride!" the young man declared as he got to his feet. He looked around and noticed Phillip. "Hey there! Excuse me, but could you tell me where I am?"

"Uh… who are you?" a slightly frightened Phillip asked.

"I guess I should introduce myself." The young man realized as he rubbed the back of his head. "My name's Jaden Yuki. Nice to meet ya."

* * *

**Author's Note:** So originally, I had planned for Crow to duel another opponent entirely. But when I thought about it more, Mai seemed like a much better fit. And it made the duel a lot easier and more fun to write. A little bit of Z-one's past was revealed in this chapter. I kind of feel like I might of revealed a little too much, too soon. But I also felt like it was a really good way to open the chapter.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	6. Hero from the Past

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix.

* * *

Chapter 5: Hero from the Past

After having a talk with the young man known as Phillip Muntz and finding out where he was, Jaden had asked to borrow the young man's D-Wheel in order to get around the city. Phillip had gladly given the red D-Wheel he had won to Jaden out of respect for who Jaden was, assuring the wandering duelist that he would make due with the D-Wheel he had spent the last few months constructing himself. Jaden rode through the city on the D-Wheel, his cat Pharaoh riding in Jaden's bag, which had been secured to the back of the cycle. He was finding it a little difficult to maneuver the red vehicle, but he was quickly getting the hand of it.

As Jaden rounded the next street corner he saw, a Duel Monster spirit appeared to fly along side him. The creature was a humanoid demon with what looked like male and female features. It had orange and teal eyes, along with a third demonic-looking red eye on the forehead. The skin of its face and parts of its torso were bright purple, along with the bicep of its right upper arm. The rest of its torso, waist, and legs were black, along with most of the skin on its upper arms. The bicep of the creature's left arm, along with its lower arms and legs were brown and scaly. On the back of the creature was a pair of large demonic wings, and it had a head of long shaggy hair. The hair on the right side was grey, while the hair on the left side was dark blue.

"Are you sure driving that thing is such a good idea?" the demon asked in a female voice.

"Relax Yubel, I'm getting the hang of it." Jaden assured the duel monster. "Besides, if I'm gonna find Alexis, it looks like I'm going to need wheels."

"But we don't even have a clue where to start looking." Yubel pointed out. "Hell, for all we know, that blonde guy who nabbed Alexis might not even be in this city."

"We still have to try. Even if we have to turn over every rock in this city." Jaden told her. "I'm going to save Alexis, one way or another."

"If you ask me, that girl's more trouble than she's worth." Yubel huffed as she crossed her arms. "But whatever. It's your call. And I guess saving her is the right thing to do."

Before the conversation could go any further, another Duel Spirit appeared before Jaden on the road. The creature was a flying ball of brown fur with large yellow and purple eyes and four green scaly legs. On the sides of its body was a pair of small white-feathered wings.

"What's up, Winged Kuriboh?" Jaden asked the little Duel Monster.

"Kuri!" Winged Kuriboh replied before taking off down the street.

"I think he wants us to follow him." Yubel deduced.

"Lead the way, Winged Kuriboh!" Jaden replied as he sped up after the little furball.

* * *

Crow drew his next card, hoping for a miracle. Upon seeing the card he drew, he smiled. "I summon Blackwing-Gale the Whirlwind!" Flying down onto the track was a black bird-like creature with a green head. "I tune the level three Gale into the level Gram for a level eight Synchro Summon!"

Gale flashed orange and changed into three rings made of green light. The rings encircled Gram and transformed him into five white stars.

"Darkened gales become the wings that soar from resolved hope!" Crow chanted. "Synchro Summon! Soar, Black-Winged Dragon!"

The lights from the two monsters flashed and changed into a black whirlwind. The twister subsided to reveal a large black-feathered dragon with the head of a bird. It had large wings and six grey legs that were like those of an insect.

"See that? Your Harpies aren't the only birds who have a dragon for a friend." Crow pointed out to Mai. "My Blackwings have one too."

"Big deal." Mai scoffed. "I'll admit that your dragon isn't half bad. But it can't hold a candle to my Malefic Pet Dragon."

"Let's see if you sing the same tune when I take your dragon down to size!" Crow responded. "Black-Winged Dragon, attack Harpie Empress! Noble Stream!"

The bird dragon opened his beak and fired at Harpie Empress with a stream of black and red energy. Before the attack could hit, Harpie Empress cracked her whip in the air. Suddenly Harpie Lady 1 flew in front of the attack and shattered into a mass of feathers. What surprised Crow even more though was that Mai's life points hadn't dropped at all.

"Hey! What kind of trick did you just pull?" Crow demanded to know.

"I told you, bird boy. My Harpie Empress is the undisputed ruler of all birds." Mai chuckled. "All the Winged Beast monsters in existence will do whatever she commands without question, even die. And once per turn I can use that power to sacrifice a Winged Beast monster I control to negate one attack."

"Crud!" Crow cursed. "Oh well. At least my Black-Winged Dragon is stronger than that freaky Pet Dragon of yours now. I end my turn."

Mai drew her next card. "First I set two cards on the field! Then I activate the final effect of Harpie Empress!"

"Oh come on! Another one?" Crow complained.

"Now you're going to see just how strong the power of my Harpie Empress's command of birds is!" Mai declared. "Once per turn, I can use her power to command one Winged Beast to rise from either of our Graveyards! Arise, Harpy Lady 1!"

The empress's white began to glow with an unearthly blue light. She cracked the whip in the air and a portal of white light appeared on the track. Harpie Lady 1 came out of the portal and went over to fly alongside the empress. Harpie Empress grinned and took hold of Harpie Lady 1's chin, causing redheaded bird woman's face to turn bright red.

"Uh, what's going on with those Harpies?" a somewhat wide-eyed Crow asked.

"I told you, Harpie Empress has the power to command any other bird to do what she desires." Mai winked. "And I mean _anything_."

"Wow. Now I know why Martha doesn't like it when the kids at the orphanage duel with Harpie cards." Crow realized.

"Anyway, since I summoned a Harpie Lady, I can destroy one Spell or Trap on the field." Mai continued. "And the card I choose to destroy is one of my own!"

Harpie Lady 1 flew back into the air and created a gust of wind with a flap of her wings. The gust caused one of the two large cards that Mai had place on the track shattered to bits.

"Why the heck would you destroy one of your own cards?" a confused Crow asked.

"The card I destroyed was another copy of Empress Wind. And when Empress Wind is destroyed by a card effect, I can add another Harpie monster to my hand." Mai explained. "Next I summon Harpie Queen!"

Flying down onto the track was another female monster in the form of a beautiful woman with very long green hair tied back into a ponytail. She had on a somewhat revealing black garment and had yellow talons for hands and feet. Her arms served as a pair of large white-feathered wings.

"Harpie Queen is treated as Harpie Lady while she's on the field, which means the effect of Harpies' Hunting Ground kicks in again." Mai announced. "And the card I choose to destroy is the other card I set on the field, Empress Wind!"

The Harpie Queen flapped her wings and sent out a wind gust at the other card Mai had set on the field. That card was struck by the gale and shattered to bits.

"Wait, you had three copies of Empress Wind this whole time?" Crow realized.

"What can I say? Luck of the draw." Mai shrugged. "But that's the least of your problems, bird boy. Since I have three other Harpies on the field, my Pet Dragon is now 1000 points stronger than your Black-Winged Dragon."

"Oh crap!" Crow cursed.

"Malefic Harpie's Pet Dragon, attack Black-Winged Dragon!" Mai commanded. "Sin Fire Giga!"

The Pet Dragon opened his mouth and blasted Black-Winged Dragon with a stream of purple flames. The bird dragon cried out before shattering to bits and Crow's life points dropped to 750.

"That ends my turn." Mai announced. "Summon any monster you want, bird boy. On my next turn, I just use my Pet Dragon's effect and burn what's left of your life points. In other words, you might as well face facts. You're toast, kid."

* * *

Yusei and the others were quickly nearing the area where Bruno had picked up the arrival of Paradox's newest assassin. Raven, Kiryu, and Sect met up with the group along the way. They were nearing the spot, when suddenly they saw Jaden dive up onto the highway from the intersection ahead. Quickly recognizing whom the rider of the red D-Wheel was, Yusei and the others stopped. Jaden noticed the group and stopped as well.

"Oh, hey there." Jaden greeted with a wave.

"You're Jaden Yuki, right?" Yusei asked with a suspicious glare.

"Wow, I guess I really am famous around here." Jaden observed.

"So which of us have you come to duel?" Yusei demanded to know.

"Well I actually wouldn't mind having a friendly duel with any of you guys." Jaden admitted. "But right now I'm kinda busy."

"So you're saying that Paradox didn't send you here to kill us?" Kiryu asked.

"Kill you?" a surprised Jaden repeated. "Look, I don't know who you guys are, but I'm not here to kill anyone! I'm just looking for a very important friend of mine!"

"Oh come on! Do you really expect us to buy that story?" Jack scoffed. "I don't know what kind of game Paradox has you playing, but it won't work! If I have to, I'll crush you myself! A relic duelist like you should be no problem for me!"

"I don't know who this Paradox guy is that you're talking about, but if you wanna fight, bring it on!" Jaden dared.

"You guys, stop!" Luna loudly interrupted. "I think Jaden's telling the truth."

"What makes you think that, Luna?" Aki asked.

"I don't know how to explain it, but there's something… very strange about Jaden." Luna replied. "Plus I saw him following a Duel Spirit when drove up. I don't think anyone working for Paradox or Z-one would be doing that."

"We don't have time for this! For all we know, my husband could be fighting for his life right now." Raven reminded him. "Besides, I think Luna's right. Let's just go find Crow and figure out what to do about Jaden later."

"Fine." Yusei agreed before turning back to Jaden. "We'll finish this another time."

With that, Yusei and the others quickly took off down the road. Having nothing else to do, Jaden drove off after them.

* * *

"Just go ahead and make your move, bird boy." Mai told Crow. "I don't have all night."

Crow couldn't deny that things looked hopeless. He only had one card left in his hand, and it wasn't anything that could help turn the tide. Just then, Yusei and the others arrived from behind.

"Crow, are you okay?" a worried Raven asked.

"I'm fine now." Crow replied as a smirk returned to his face.

"What the…? Hey, why's your friend there dueling Mai Valentine?" a surprised Jaden asked.

"Please, as if you don't already know." Jack replied. "I get what's going on now. You're going to wait until your friend from the past there finished off Crow and come after the rest of us together."

"I keep telling you I have no clue what's going on here!" Jaden insisted.

"It looks like your little friends came to cheer you on." Mai observed. "But there's nothing they can do to save you. All you can do is play your last card and sit back while I fry you."

"That's where you're wrong!" Crow told her. "As long as I've got cards in my deck and my friends behind me, I'll never give up!"

Suddenly the tail mark on Crow's arm lit up. At the same time, the top card of Crow's deck began to glow with a crimson light.

Crow drew the card from his deck and grinned. "I activate the Spell card, Black Feather Preparation! I banish Gale the Whirlwind from my Graveyard to add a certain pair of cards to my hand!"

A ghostly image of Gale appeared on the track and flew off into the sky until he faded from view. An instant later, two cards popped out of the center of Crow's deck.

"Now I activate a Ritual Spell, Rite of Black Feathers!" Crow announced. An unlit silver torch materialized on the track to float alongside Crow. Carved into the torch's head was the seal of the Crimson Dragon. "I banish Gram the Shining Star from my Graveyard to summon the Ritual Tuner monster, Blackwing-Flare the Dragon Star Priest!"

Gram reappeared on the track and shattered into a mass of black feathers. One of the feathers landed in the unlit torch, igniting its red flame. The flame grew and expanded out onto the track. The flame soon subsided to reveal a well-muscled man with tan skin and orange hair, wearing white robesand a large headdress in the shape of a black bird. On his back he had a pair of black-feathered wings, and painted on his face were red marks like the yellow marks on Crow's cheeks.

"When Flare is summoned to the field, I can negate the effects of one monster my opponent controls until the end of the turn!" Crow announced. "And the monster I choose your Harpie Empress!"

The dragon star priest raised his arms forward and fired a ball of crimson light from his hands. The ball struck Harpie Empress on the chest and left the seal of the Crimson Dragon where it hit. The empress then began to crackle with red electricity.

"What the…? How dare you?" Mai protested.

"I activate Flare's effect and summon Black-Winged Dragon back to the field!" Crow announced. Flare clapped his hands and Crow's dragon reappeared on the track in a burst of black flames. "Now I tune the level four Flare into the level eight Black-Winged Dragon for a level twelve Synchro Summon!"

Flare clapped his hands again and transformed into three rings made of crimson flame. The flames expanded and encircled Black-Winged Dragon.

"Pitch-black winds gather now and become a storm of justice!" Crow chanted. "Primal Synchro! Take off, Blackhawk Dragon!"

The flaming rings enclosed around Black-Winged Dragon and ignited him into a pillar of black fire. The flames soon subsided to reveal a much larger dragon with four legs and a body covered in black feathers. Its legs were silver and ended in large talons and its bird-like head had a silver beak. Adorning the front of his chest a red diamond-shaped gem, and its tail ended in a silver blade that resembled the tail of the Crimson Dragon.

"Whoa! What kind of summon was that?" a stunned Jaden wondered.

"Blackhawk Dragon, attack Harpie Empress!" Crow commanded. "Ebony Flare!"

Blackhawk Dragon blasted Harpie Empress with a stream of pitch-black flames from his beak. The flames completely incinerated the ruler of all birds, leaving nothing left. Mai's life points dropped down to 3300.

"Good, it was only a slight blow, but Crow's finally done some damage to Ms. Valentine." Bruno observed.

"Yeah! Go get her, boss!" Sect cheered.

"That'll end my turn." Crow announced. "Looks like this duel's not quite over yet."

"Don't think you've won just 'cause you got a lucky shot against my empress!" an enraged Mai declared as she drew her next card. "You may have summoned a powerful monster, but this duel is still mine! I activate the effect of my Malefic Pet Dragon and sacrifice Harpie Queen to take out what's left of your life points!"

The green-haired queen of the Harpies changed into green light and entered the gem on the Pet Dragon's chest. The dragon fired another blast of green energy at Crow. But before it could hit, Blackhawk Dragon got in the way and absorbed the blast into the gem on his chest. The gem began to glow with a brilliant crimson light.

"What just happened?" a stunned Mai wondered.

"Sorry, but Blackhawk Dragon absorbs effect damage and adds it to his own ATK." Crow explained. "And thanks to you, his ATK is now 4350!"

"Fine! I set one card on the field and end my turn!" Mai furiously announced.

"She didn't bother to switch any of her monsters to Defense Mode." Aki noticed.

"That card Mai set on the field is probably a Trap to take out Blackhawk Dragon." Yusei deduced. "She probably wants Crow to attack."

"Your friend's only hope is probably to draw something that can get rid of that Trap. After that, the duel's as good a won." Jaden commented. Yusei gave Jaden a suspicious eye. "What, I can't watch the duel too?"

"Time to end this!" Crow declared as he drew his next card. "I activate the Spell card, Cards for Black Feathers! By discarding Blackwing- Zephyros the Elite, I get to draw two more cards! Now I set a card on the field, and by returning that card to my hand I summon Zephyros the Elite from the Graveyard!"

The large card Crow placed on the track vanished. Appearing from a black mist was a bird-like warrior clad in blue with orange-brown armor and large black-feathered wings. He had on a bird mask with long blue feathers and a white face that had a long beak.

"Normally because I summoned Zephyros this way, I'd take 400 points of damage. But because of Blackhawk Dragon, that damage only gets added to his ATK." Crow continued. "I set card back on the field, which caused Zephyros to go back to the Graveyard! But by returning that card to my hand, I can summon Zephyrose again!"

With Crow's actions, Zephyros shattered to bits, only to reappear a moment later. At the same time, the gem on Blackhawk Dragon's chest began to glow even brighter.

"Now Crow's dragon has over 5000 ATK!" an impressed Leo observed.

"Blackhawk Dragon, attack Harpie Lady 1!" Crow commanded. "Ebony Flare!"

"I activate my Trap, Mirror Force!" Mai quickly announced. But when she tried to activate the Trap, nothing happened. "Huh?"

"Sorry, but Spell and Trap cards can't be activated during Blackhawk Dragon's attack!" Crow revealed.

Blackhawk Dragon fired another stream of pitch-black flames that incinerated the Harpy. Mai's monster was vaporized and her life points dropped to zero. With the duel over, the remaining monsters vanished and the area around the track returned to normal. Mai had been knocked unconscious and her D-Wheel came to a stop. Before anyone could do anything, Mai vanished in a flash of pink light.

"It seems that I may have once again underestimate you." A voice suddenly spoke. Everyone looked to see Paradox before them on his D-Wheel. "I was sure a duelist as skilled as Ms. Valentine would be effective."

"Send whoever you want after us, Paradox!" Yusei dared. "We'll beat any assassin you've got."

"Hey!" Jaden loudly interrupted, getting everyone's attention. Yusei and the others were surprised to see Jaden's brown eyes turn bright gold before glowing teal and orange. "So you're this Paradox I've been hearing about. I've got a bone to pick with you!"

"What the… What are you?" a surprised Yusei asked Jaden.

"Well, I certainly never expected you to follow me into the time stream." Paradox smirked.

"Give back Alexis now!" Jaden ordered.

"You're in no position to be making any demands, Supreme King." Paradox told him.

"Supreme King?" Yusei repeated.

"Uh, guys? Maybe you should all take a look at Mr. Yuki's shadow." Carly suggested, pointing at the ground.

Yusei and the others looked down at the shadow of Jaden being cast by the streetlamp above. The shadow had split into two different silhouettes. One was the figure of Yubel. The other was a figure that looked to be wearing spiked armor and a cape.

"Who the hell is this guy?" Crow wondered.

"Of course. I forget that none of you know the truth about Jaden Yuki." Paradox realized. "The truth is, he is not a normal human. He is the reincarnation of a being known as the Supreme King, whose purpose is to oppose the malevolent entity known as the Light of Destruction. Not only that, Mr. Yuki has also fused himself with the Duel Monster spirit known as Yubel."

"So you know about that too, huh?" Jaden observed. "Why did you kidnap Alexis?"

"Rest assured, Supreme King. Ms. Rhodes is serving a noble purpose." Paradox replied. "When that purpose is complete, I will return her to you."

"As if I'll buy that!" Jaden scoffed. "Give her back now!"

"I warn you, Jaden Yuki. It would not be wise to oppose me." Paradox cautioned.

"Wait, so Jaden really isn't working for you?" Yusei realized.

"His powers make him one of the few individuals I cannot control." Paradox confirmed. "The only other duelists I can't brainwash besides him are the wielders of the Millennium Items."

"Millennium what?" Jack asked.

"I'll end things her for tonight." Paradox decided. "But mark my words, Yusei. This war of ours is far from over."

Before anyone could act, Paradox vanished in a flash of pink light. Jaden sighed heavily and closed his eyes. When he opened them again, they had returned to their normal brown.

"Uh, Jaden." Yusei spoke, getting the wandering duelist's attention. "Sorry about before. I guess we sort of got off on the wrong foot. Why don't you come back with us to our place? Seems like we've got a lot to talk about."

* * *

Jaden went with Yusei and the others back to the Fudo mansion. Once they had all gathered in the drawing room, Yusei's gang explained to Jaden everything that was going on. They told him about how Paradox and Z-one were plotting to destroy the city to change the future, and of how they had been sending brainwashed duelists from the past to try and kill them.

"Wow, so this is really the future?" Jaden asked after the group had finished telling him everything.

"The future by your perspective." Bruno pointed out. "For us, this is the present."

"You're pretty well known in this time." Carly revealed. "Though from what Paradox said, it looks like some of the urban legends I've read about you are true."

"How did you end up here?" Yusei asked him.

"I was attending this little reunion for my old Duel Academy class." Jaden began. "I decided to step out for some air, when all of a sudden I heard some noise coming from inside the building. When I got back in, that Paradox guy had knocked out my friend, Alexis Rhodes, and was putting her on the back of that weird motorcycle of his. After that he went through this weird portal and I chased after him. The next thing I knew, I was in this city."

"Chances are, Paradox will send your friend Alexis after us next." Yusei assumed. "But if we work together, we should be able to get her back."

"Count me in." Jaden agreed. "I want to stop Paradox before he tries sending any of my other friends to kill you."

"Then let's beat Paradox together." Yusei decided as he shook Jaden's hand.

* * *

Paradox entered the endless white room of the Arc Cradle. As always, Z-one was floating in the center. Paradox found that he was nervous about reporting to his cyborg master. This time wasn't just to report the failure of another assassin. This time he had to report that the Signers had gained a potentially powerful ally. And he was not sure how Z-one was going to take the news.

Z-one noticed Paradox's arrival. "What is it?"

"I'm afraid I have some unpleasant news, my lord." Paradox reported. "Not only has Ms. Valentine been defeated by Crow Hogan, there has been… a slight complication."

"What do you mean?" Z-one asked as he turned to fully face Paradox.

"It seems that when I acquired Alexis Rhodes, Jaden Yuki followed me through the time stream." Paradox reported. "He is currently with the Signers, as we speak."

"I see. This truly does introduce a random element to our plans." Z-one agreed.

"I hope you will forgive my carelessness." Paradox requested.

"It is of little consequence." Z-one replied as he turned away from Paradox. "No matter what allies the Signers have, in the end they will still fail to stop us. Continue the mission, Paradox."

"As you wish, my lord." Paradox complied.

* * *

**Author's Note:** For me, one of the best things about doing this chapter was writing the scenes with Jaden. It's been quite some time since I did a story with Jaden. The other two stories I did with Jaden were two crossover stories between _Yu-Gi-Oh! GX_ and _Strawberry Panic_. The first story is called _Yu-Gi-Oh! GX: Strawberry Crisis_, and the second is _GX: Dark Queen of Miator_. They're two of my earliest Yu-Gi-Oh! related stories, and perhaps not my best work. Still, I greatly enjoyed doing them. Anyway, just thought I'd mention that.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	7. The Crystal Statue

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix.

* * *

Chapter 6: The Crystal Statue

Misty once again found herself wandering around the corridors of the Arc Cradle. It seemed that no matter how many times she walked through the halls of the futuristic fortress she usually end up taking a wrong turn somewhere, unless Sherry or Paradox was with her. They somehow seemed able to navigate the fortress better than her. As Misty attempted to find the right corridor that would take her back to her room, she came upon a door that she had not before encountered. The front of the door was painted white and seemed somehow out of place in the dark-grey halls of the labyrinth fortress.

As soon as Misty came near the door, it suddenly slid opened on its own. Against her better judgment she went inside. The chamber that existed on the other side of that white door was dark and seemed almost like a tomb. But in the center of the chamber a blue light shined down from what looked like a hole in the ceiling, illuminating a large crystal statue in the center. The statue was of a woman wearing a long flowing dress. Her hands were clasped together at the front of her body and were holding a single rose. Misty closely examined the face of the statue and was shocked. That face which seemed to bare a sad expression and that hair that was long in the front and adorned with its strange ornament meant to keep psychic powers in check. There was no mistaking that the statue was of Aki.

"What are you doing here?" a deep cold voice asked from behind, causing Misty to jump and let out a cry. She turned around to see Z-one hovering before her. "This is not a room I wish others to be in."

"Forgive me Lord Z-one." Misty bowed apologetically. "I had gotten lost on the way to my room again and found the door to this room. I was only curious."

"I see." Z-one replied. "…Your room is down the next corridor on the left. Now leave and never come back to this room again."

"Yes, of course." Misty agreed before hurrying out of the chamber.

After a few moments, Misty finally found the right corridor that would lead her back to her quarters. As she walked there, she couldn't help but think about what she had just seen. Why did Z-one have a statue of Aki in a room that no one else was allowed to enter? Misty knew that Z-one had known Sherry in another timeline, so she assumed that he probably could've known Aki as well, but in what way? It occurred to Misty that however Z-one knew Aki, she must've been very special to him. After all, why else would he go to the trouble of building such a memorial to her?

* * *

It was late in the afternoon as Yusei and Jaden rode back to the Fudo mansion. They had spent a good part of the day training at Neo Domino Stadium so that Jaden could get the hand of using a D-Wheel. And while they were at it, they ended up having four duels against each other. In the end, both Jaden and Yusei had won two duels each. Once the two champion duelists parked their D-Wheels in the garage, they both headed for the mansion's kitchen.

"Well, I think you're definitely getting the hang of using a D-Wheel." Yusei told Jaden as the entered the kitchen. "I'll say one thing though. I'm sure glad you're on our side."

"Yeah, I really beat you in that last duel." Jaden agreed. "That was pretty fun though."

"Probably the most fun I've had in awhile." Yusei remarked as he opened the fridge. "One thing has been bothering me though. When all this is over, how are we supposed to get you back to your own time?"

"Hmm… you know I never thought about that." Jaden admitted. "But right now the only thing I'm worried about is rescuing Alexis. We can worry about how I'll get home afterward."

"You do know that Alexis might be the next assassin that Paradox sends after us." Yusei reminded him. "Or it could be another one of your friends."

"Yeah. I know." Jaden replied. "But I'll help you take on whoever Paradox sends after us."

"Let's just hope we can beat them." Yusei replied as he placed two pre-prepared sandwiches on the counter. "There are some pretty strong duelists from the past."

"Well, at least we won't have to worry about facing Yugi." Jaden pointed out as he took a bite of his sandwich.

"Yugi Muto? What do you mean by that?" Yusei asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Paradox said he couldn't brainwash the duelists who had the Millennium Items." Jaden reminded him.

"You mean Yugi had one of those things?" Yusei asked.

"Yeah. You know that gold upside down pyramid Yugi wore around his neck?" Jaden asked him. "It's called the Millennium Puzzle. That was one of the Millennium Items Paradox mentioned."

Yusei knew of the item Jaden was talking about. He had seen it in pictures of Yugi wearing a gold pendant in the form of an inverted pyramid with a strange eye on the front.

"Well, I guess we really don't have to worry about facing the strongest duelist who ever lived in a life or death duel." Yusei realized. "Still, we shouldn't let down our guard. There are a lot of other strong duelists we might have to worry about."

Before the two could continue their meal, Bruno ran into the room. "Guys! I've just picked up another temporal distortion!"

"Does that mean Paradox just sent another assassin?" Jaden asked.

"Yeah. And it could be anyone." Yusei confirmed. "Where'd you pick up the location of the portal?"

"On the highway between Satellite and the city." Bruno answered. "Yusei, wasn't Aki supposed to be on her way back from Crow and Raven's by now?"

Yusei's eyes widened at the realization. "Yeah. In fact she just called me a few minutes ago and said she was heading back."

"Then I guess we better get going!" Jaden decided.

* * *

Aki rode home on her D-Wheel after a long study session with Raven. After spending hours reviewing textbooks it felt good for Aki to be out on the open highway. Just as she got half way across the bridge though, Aki saw someone on a stopped D-Wheel in her path. The D-Wheel was white with blue panels on the sides, and the front of it was styled like a dragon with small gold wings on the sides of its head and a short blue horn on the front of its snout. The rider was a young man wearing a blue riding helmet with a white shirt with long baggy sleeves, a blue vest, and black pants.

"You Aki Izayoi?" the rider asked with a sinister grin.

"Aki Fudo, actually." Aki replied with a suspicious glare. "Who are you?"

"I'm Jesse Anderson, and I've come to duel you." The young man replied.

"I see. So Paradox sent you." Aki quickly deduced.

"That's right. And there's no getting out of it." Jesse confirmed. "So let's get on with this."

"Fine." Aki agreed. "But you'll regret coming after me."

Jesse and Aki took off down the road. With the announcement of the duel, the highway system redirected them onto the appropriate duel lane. Jesse managed to make it onto the track first and took the first turn.

"Track Field, activate!" Jesse called out. "Gem Road!"

In an instant, the area around the track transformed into an ancient Roman city made of marble. The walls of the bridge became encrusted with gems of seven different colors.

"Once per turn, Gem Road lets me place a Crystal Beast in one of my Spell and Trap Zones. So I play Crystal Beast Ruby Carbuncle!" Jesse announced. A large uncut ruby appeared to hover alongside Jesse's D-Wheel. "Next I summon Crystal Beast Emerald Tortoise in Defense Mode!"

Appearing on the track was a fairly large tortoise that had receded into its dark-green shell. Adorning the top of its shell were shards of emerald gemstones.

"That ends my turn." Jesse announced.

Aki drew her first card. "I summon Dark Verger in Attack Mode!"

Materializing on the track was a small dark-green plant sprout. On the two large leaves of the sprout were two large odd-looking eyes.

"What the heck do you think you can do with that puny little monster?" Jesse asked.

"I return Dark Verger to my hand to summon a much more powerful monster!" Aki announced. "Descend, Fallen Angel of Roses!"

Dark Verger vanished and another monster flew down from the sky. The monster in question was a female angel wearing a white mask. She had long straight black hair with rose-shaped ornaments in the sides, and wings with black rose petals for feathers. She wore on a skimpy black leather outfit with a very short pink skirt with knee-high high-heeled boots and elbow-high gloves. In her right hand, the angel carried a long whip covered in thorns.

"Fallen Angel, attack Emerald Tortoise!" Aki commanded. "Rose Whip!"

The dark angel cracked her whip and lashed the shell of the tortoise. Emerald Tortoise shattered to bits and reassembled into an uncut emerald that floated alongside Jesse.

"That's right. Those Crystal Beast monsters of yours turn into gems and stay on the field when they're destroyed." Aki recalled.

"That's right. And thanks to Gem Road, I can place another Crystal Beast in my Spell and Trap Zone when another one's destroyed." Jesse revealed. "So I play Crystal Beast Cobalt Eagle!" An uncut cobalt gemstone appeared on the track. "That makes three."

"I've read about the duels you've had in the past know what you're up to. You're trying to get all seven of those Crystal Beasts in play so you can bring out Rainbow Dragon!" Aki deduced. "But I won't let things get that far!"

"Don't be so sure you know what I'm up to." Jesse grinned. "I've got a few new tricks up my sleeve."

"I set one card on the field and end my turn." Aki announced.

Before Jesse could begin his turn, Yusei, Jaden and Bruno came up from behind. They pulled up closer to get a better look at the duel.

"Aki, are you okay?" Yusei called up.

"Yeah, I'm fine!" Aki assured him. "But I have to end this duel quick."

"Well, looks like we have an audience." Jesse observed. "Not that I mind, of course."

"What the… Jesse?" a stunned Jaden recognized as he pulled up closer. "Jesse, what the heck are you doing?"

"Am I supposed to know you?" Jesse asked.

"What? Jesse, it's me! Jaden!" the wandering duelist reminded him. "Don't you recognize me at all?"

"Look, I don't care who you are! All I know is that I have a job to do!" Jesse told him. "So get lost!"

"It's no use Jaden." Yubel told him as she appeared. "Paradox has obviously programmed to kill Aki and ignore everything else. We're just going to have to wait and hope Aki can beat him."

"Time to bring this to an end!" Jesse declared as he drew his next card. "First I activate the effect of Gem Road and play Crystal Beast topaz Tiger in my Spell and Trap Zone!" An uncut topaz gemstone appeared on the track. "And now I banish Rainbow Dragon from my deck to summon Malefic Rainbow Dragon!"

Suddenly descending to the track was a massive white serpentine dragon with gemstones embedded in the sides of its body. Its wings were a pair of massive black blades with white markings. On its face it wore a black and white mask.

"What the…? _Malefic_ Rainbow Dragon?" a shocked Jaden repeated. "What kind of monster is that?"

"I've seen this before." Yusei told Jaden. "Most of Paradox's assassins have had a card like that. They're summoned by banishing the original version of the monster from the deck, making it a lot easier to summon."

"That's right." Jesse confirmed. "With Malefic Rainbow Dragon, I don't have to rely on those pathetic Crystal Beasts to summon him."

"Jesse, how can you say that about your own cards?" Jaden asked him.

"Hey, don't get me wrong. The Crystal Beasts still have their uses." Jesse assured him. "Thanks to the effect of Gem Road, all Rainbow Dragon monsters on the field gain 1000 ATK for each Crystal Beast in my Spell and Trap Zones. And that includes my Malefic Rainbow Dragon!"

"But with four Crystal Beasts in your Spell and Trap Zones, that means…" Aki suddenly realized.

"That's right! Malefic Rainbow Dragon now has 8000 ATK!" Jesse confirmed. "Malefic Rainbow Dragon, destroy Fallen Angel of Roses! Sin Rainbow Refraction!"

The dragon opened its jaws and fired a massive beam of rainbow colored light. The light struck Fallen Angel and created a massive explosion.

"AKI!" a horrified Yusei called out.

Jesse chuckled at his victory. But as soon as the smoke cleared, everyone saw that Fallen Angel of Roses was still on the track. But more importantly, Aki was completely unharmed. Her life points had only gone down to 1200. Yusei breathed a heavy sigh of relief.

"What! How the hell are you not dead?" Jesse demanded to know.

"When you attacked, I activated my Trap, Rose Angel Barrier." Aki explained. "This card prevented Fallen Angel from being destroyed and cut the damage I would've taken in half."

"Fine! I'll end my turn." Jesse announced. "But you won't be so lucky next time! On my next turn, I'll destroy you!"

Aki drew her next card. "I activate the Spell card, Card Rotator! By discarding Dark Verger, I can switch your Malefic Rainbow Dragon to Defense Mode! Next I summon Glow-Up Bulb!"

Appearing on the track was a large brown seedpod with a blue and white flower growing out the top. The front of the pod opened up to reveal a strange monstrous eye.

"Since I have a Tuner on the field, I can summon Dark Verger back from the Graveyard!" Aki announced. The plant sprout reappeared on the track. "I tune the level one Glow-Up Bulb into the level two Dark Verger for a level three Synchro Summon!"

Glow-Up Bulb burst into flames and became a ring of reddish-pink light. The ring encircled Dark Verger and transformed it into two balls of fire.

"The flames of hope spark into blazing flowers! Their scattered petals create the path toward tomorrow!" Aki chanted. "Synhcro Summon! Ignite, Synchro Tuner, Cyber Rose Angel!"

The flames ignited into a pillar of pinkish-red fire. After a moment, the flames subsided to reveal a young woman with burgundy-red hair that went just past her shoulders and a pair of wings with red rose petals for feathers. She had on a black skin-tight bodysuit with a wide red stripe running down the front of the torso. A wide silver band ran around her waist like a belt, and on her right hand was a large metal gauntlet with claws. On her face she wore a green visor on over her eyes.

"When Cyber Rose Angel is Synchro Summoned, my opponent takes 300 points of damage!" Aki announced.

Cyber Rose Angel fired a ball of flames from her mechanical gauntlet. The struck Jesse and dropped his life points to 3700.

"I now activate a Spell card, Past Life!" Aki announced. "By sacrificing Fallen Angel of Roses, I can summon a Synchro monster with the same level and ATK! Appear now, Black Rose Dragon!"

Fallen Angel of Roses glowed with a red light and changed shape. The light faded to reveal a bird-like dragon with red rose petals for feathers. Suddenly Aki's D-Wheel began to speed up. As her speed increased, an aura of pinkish-red light began to form around her.

"Ice cold flames ignite into a new burning star! Crimson Flower bloom into a new evolution!" Aki chanted as she continued to speed up. "Accel Synchro!"

Suddenly Aki took off in a streak of light with her two monsters as Cyber Rose Angel changed into three rings of light that encircled Black Rose Dragon. In an instant, they had vanished.

"Where the heck did she go?" Jaden wondered.

"Wait for it." Yusei told him.

An instant later, another streak of light came up from behind and Aki emerged with a new four-legged dragon with a slender body with four large wings covered in red rose petals. On its head were two long red slightly curved horns and a pair of red spikes on each side of its head. The back of the dragon's neck was covered in rose petals, while the front of the neck was covered in black scales. The rose petals also spread to the front of the dragon's chest, while its belly was covered in more black armor-like scales. The dragon's long bare brown legs ended in sharp red talon-like claws, and at the end of its body were two thick brown tails covered in red thorns.

"Be born, Blazing Rose Dragon!" Aki called out.

"What the hell?" Jesse exclaimed.

"When Blazing Rose Dragon is Synchro Summoned, she destroys all Spell and Trap card on the field!" Aki announced.

Blazing Rose Dragon roared and enveloped the track in a sea of flames. The gemstones hovering alongside Jesse shattered to bits and the Roman City around the track was burned to the ground.

"Since I just destroyed your Track Field, I can play one of my own from my deck! So I activate Rose Paradise!" Aki announced. The burning city shattered and was replaced by an endless field of roses that spread out in all directions. "And now, for every Spell and Trap card she destroyed, Blazing Rose Dragon inflicts 200 points of damage!"

Blazing Rose Dragon glared down at Jesse before blasting him with a stream of crimson flames from her mouth. The strike dropped Jesse's life points down to 2700.

"I now activate another of Blazing Rose Dragon's effects!" Aki announced. "By banishing Dark Verger from my Graveyard, I can switch Malefic Rainbow Dragon to Attack Mode. But its ATK becomes zero and Blazing Rose Dragon gains half its ATK!"

"What!" a shocked Jesse exclaimed.

A ghostly image of Dark Verger appeared on the track before being eaten by Blazing Rose Dragon. The rose dragon then launched her tails forward and used them to restrain Malefic Rainbow Dragon.

"So now Blazing Rose Dragon has 5200 ATK." Jaden observed. "And with Malefic Rainbow Dragon's ATK at zero, that means Jesse will be taken out in one shot!"

"Blazing Rose Dragon, attack Malefic Rainbow Dragon!" Aki commanded. "Crimson Rose Flare!"

Blazing Rose Dragon reared back her head and blasted the other dragon with a stream of crimson flames. Malefic Rainbow Dragon exploded and Jesse's life points dropped all the way to zero. With the duel over, Blazing Rose Dragon vanished and the area around the track returned to normal. Jesse was knocked out cold as his D-Wheel came to a stop.

Yusei meanwhile pulled up to Aki. "You okay?"

"Yeah." Aki assured him. "Sorry to scare you like that back there."

"Don't worry. I knew you'd get through it somehow." Yusei smiled.

"It seems that I have failed once again." A familiar voice observed. Everyone looked to see Paradox before them on his D-Wheel.

"Damn it, Paradox! This time you've gone too far!" Yusei angrily told him. "Go after me, if you want, but stay away from my wife!"

"Wife you say?" Paradox chuckled. "Well wife or not, she's still a Signer. Which means she's fair game. Still, I must admit that I was surprised that your dear Aki was one of the Signers. Though not as surprised as when I found out that you were their leader, Yusei. Fate does seem to have an ironic sense of humor."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Yusei asked.

"Hey!" Jaden cut in. "Where do you get off using Jesse like this?"

"Oh yes, Mr. Anderson." Paradox recalled. "You may have him back as a consolation prize. I took this Jesse Anderson from a few days after you followed me through the time stream. Though I will be taking back the two cards I loaned him."

Paradox outstretched his arm and two pink lights flew out of Jesse's deck. The lights went to Paradox's hand and changed into the cards for Malefic Rainbow Dragon and Gem Road.

"Don't worry. He'll wake up and remember nothing of what happened." Paradox assured Jaden. "Now if you'll all excuse me, I'll be off now."

"Now wait just a…!" Jaden began to protest, but before he could finish, Paradox vanished in a flash of pink light.

A moment later, Jesse began to wake up. "Where am I?"

"Jesse, are you okay?" a concerned Jaden asked.

"Jaden?" Jesse replied weakly. "Where are we? And who the heck are these people?"

"I'll explain it to you later, bro." Jaden answered. "Right now, you should come with us and get some rest."

* * *

Misty walked into what was considered the break room aboard the Arc Cradle. She found Sherry sitting by herself at the table reading a book. Misty quickly went over to the table and sat down.

Sherry looked up from her book and noticed Misty. "What's with you? You look like you've seen a ghost."

"You're not far off." Misty told her. "I ended up getting lost on the way to my room again and found a room that had a crystal statue in it."

"So?" Sherry replied indifferently.

"The statue was of Aki!" Misty explained.

"Izayoi?" Sherry asked with a raised eyebrow. "Why would this place have a statue of her?"

"I don't know. But Z-one found me in the room and told me to leave." Misty continued. "He also warned me never to come back to that room."

"Okay, that is weird." Sherry admitted. "And just when I thought this place couldn't get any weirder. But I still don't get why Z-one would make a big deal about a statue of Izayoi."

"The statue, the whole room actually, was like some sort of tomb." Misty recalled. "It was like Z-one's personal memorial to Aki. I think Z-one maybe knew Aki in the time he comes from."

"What, like that whole crap about him knowing me in some other reality?" Sherry scoffed. "Do you really believe that stuff?"

"How else do you explain it?" Misty pointed out. "Z-one has to be from a time when both you and Aki had very different lives. And in those lives, you somehow knew Z-one."

"Look, I'll admit it's weird. But come on, it's just some statue." Sherry told her.

"So, one of you has seen the statue." A familiar voice spoke. The two women turned to see Paradox standing in front of the door.

"Oh, Lord Paradox." Misty greeted. "Do you know anything about what we're talking about?"

"I will say that the statue you speak of is of the only woman Lord Z-one ever loved." Paradox revealed. "He lost her right when the Meklord invasion began. That is all I will say on the matter, and I strongly advice you two not to dig any further. Now if you will excuse me, I must report to Lord Z-one."

With that, Paradox left the room. Sherry simply shrugged off the encounter and returned to her book. But Misty couldn't help but think about what Paradox had just told them. With this revelation about Z-one's past revealed, she started to wonder about the face behind the time god's metal mask.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Originally the duel in this chapter was going to be stretched out to two chapters. But the duel I ended up writing turned out to be real short. And the more I thought about it, the more I felt that it'd be better if the duel was only one chapter. Not just the duel, but the stuff concerning Z-one's "shine". Plus I felt like writing a duel that was fairy simple after the last two duels I worked on.

Anyway, a big hint about Z-one's past in this AU was revealed in this chapter. I'm sure many reading this story have started to figure out just what's being heavily implied in this story.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	8. The Devil's Highway

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix

* * *

Chapter 7: The Devil's Highway

Right after the duel between Aki and Jesse Anderson, Yusei and the others took Jesse back with them to the Fudo mansion. Once there, Yusei and Jaden explained everything about what was going on with Paradox and Z-one. After understanding the situation, Jesse eagerly agreed to help them stop Paradox. A relatively calm evening passed after that conversation. The morning came and Jaden and Jesse left the mansion's guesthouse to find Yusei, Aki and the twins in the main kitchen having breakfast.

"Morning." Jesse greeted as he and Jaden entered the room.

"Good morning guys." Aki greeted back. "Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah. Though I'm still getting used to this mansion." Jaden admitted as he sat at the counter. "It sure isn't the Slifer Red dorm at my old academy."

"Of course you're probably used to this place, huh Yusei?" Jesse assumed. "Jaden mentioned that this place belonged to your parents."

"Yeah, but I never grew up here." Yusei revealed. "I grew up in an orphanage in Satellite. I never knew my parents."

"It was a real surprise when Yusei inherited this place." Leo remarked between mouthfuls of pancakes. "Not to mention all that money."

"Wow. I wonder what kind of life you would've lived if your parents didn't die?" Jaden commented.

"I sometimes wonder about that too." Yusei admitted. "But aside from people from the future and past trying to kill us, my life's pretty good."

Before the conversation could continue, Bruno rushed into the room. "Guys! I just picked up another temporal distortion. Looks like Paradox just sent his next assassin."

"Where's the distortion?" Yusei asked.

"Right in our front yard." Bruno revealed.

Immediately, everyone rushed out of the kitchen and out the front door of the mansion. Out in the courtyard right before the door was a swirling vortex of pink light. Three figures dropped out of the vortex before it disappeared. The first figure got to his feet, and Yusei and the others were stunned to see who it was. The person was a fairly short young man with an odd almost star-shaped hairstyle. Much of his hair was black with purple highlights around the edge, and there were long blonde locks that extended out from the front. He had on what looked like a blue school uniform of some kind and an old style duel disk. Hanging from a silver chain around his neck was a gold pendant in the shape of an inverted pyramid.

"No way. It's… Yugi Muto." Yusei identified.

"Ow! That was a rough landing!" Yugi declared as he rubbed the back of his head and turned to one of the other figures on the ground. "You okay Tea?"

The person Yugi was speaking to was a young woman with brown hair that ended just above her shoulders. She had on a yellow shirt with the word, "Spirit" written in black letters and a short white skirt. Slowly, she got to her feet.

"Yeah, I'm fine." The young woman known as Tea answered. "What about Mokuba?"

As if on cue, the other person that had arrived with Yugi and Tea got to his feet. He was a boy who looked to be around ten with long black hair, wearing a striped blue and white shirt with and orange vest and blue jeans.

"Where are we?" Mokuba wondered. "More importantly, where's my brother?"

"Yo, Yugi!" Jaden called as he ran up with the others.

"Oh. Jaden, right?" Yugi recalled.

"How do you guys know one another?" Aki asked.

"This actually isn't my first experience with time travel." Jaden revealed.

"Wait, time travel?" a stunned Tea repeated. "Where… when did we end up? Who are you people?"

"There'll be time for explanations later." Yusei replied. "I'm Yusei Fudo, by the way. And what I'd like to know how you three got here."

"Well, we were attending the opening ceremony for this tournament Kaiba was throwing." Yugi began.

"Wait, as in Seto Kaiba?" Yusei asked.

"That's right." Tea confirmed. "Then all of a sudden this blonde guy on a motorcycle showed up and grabbed Kaiba and our friend, Joey. He drove off through this weird light and the three of us chased after him. The next thing we knew, we were here."

"This is bad." Bruno remarked. "Seto Kaiba and Joey Wheeler. Paradox has just kidnapped two of the most powerful duelists in history."

"Who's this Paradox?" Yugi asked. "And why has he taken our friends?"

"He's someone from a later time than ours who's trying to kill us." Yusei explained. "And he's been brainwashing duelists from the past to do it."

"Wait, so does that mean he's brainwashed Kaiba and Joey?" a shocked Yugi realized.

"I'm afraid so." Yusei gravely confirmed. "And he could be sending them after us any minute."

"We have to get my brother back!" Mokuba told them.

Luna placed a hand on Mokuba's shoulder, getting this attention. "Don't worry. We'll get your brother back."

"Oh…" Mokuba replied as his face turned red. "Yeah, you're right. I'm sure we will. Uh say, what's your name?"

"I'm Luna." The green-haired girl greeted with a warm smile.

"And I'm Leo, her brother." The other young Signer cut in with an icy glare.

"There's one thing I don't get. If this Paradox guy is after duelists from the past, why didn't he take Yugi?" Tea asked.

"Because his brainwashing wouldn't affect Yugi because of his Millennium Puzzle." Jaden answered.

"I guess that makes sense." Yugi agreed. "Whatever brainwashing power Paradox has probably wouldn't work on the other me."

"The other you?" Yusei asked with a quirked brow.

"Guys, I'm picking up another distortion." Bruno cut in as he looked at the handheld device he was holding.

"Then it looks like Paradox has sent either Joey or Kaiba after us." Yusei deduced.

* * *

Kiryu drove his D-Wheel along the bridge on his way from Satellite. He felt like visiting Yusei to have a friendly duel with him. But as Kiryu drove, he saw Paradox parked on the road in front of him.

KIryu brought his D-Wheel to a stop as soon as he reached Paradox. "So, you've decided to come after me yourself?"

"Kiryu Kyosuki. Though you may not be a Signer, you and your Earthbound Immortal may cause problems for Lord Z-one's plans." Paradox smirked. "Therefore, I must eliminate you."

"Then bring it on." Kiryu dared. "I'm sure you would be an opponent that could satisfy me."

"Oh, I haven't come to duel you myself." Paradox revealed. "I merely wish to see the look on your face when you see the opponent I've arranged for you. Behold!"

Suddenly there was another flash of pink light. Appearing in between Kiryu and Paradox was a young man riding a black D-Wheel styled like a dragon with red eyes. The rider was wearing a black helmet and a sort of blue school uniform.

Kiryu recognized the rider immediately. "Joey Wheeler?"

Joey opened his eyes and began to look around. "Huh? Where am I? And why am I on a motorcycle?"

"I'm leaving nothing more to chance." Paradox declared. "Yugi Muto may be beyond my control, but history's other most powerful duelists are not! You will die by Joey's Wheeler's hand!"

"Wait just a minute, blondie!" Joey protested. "I don't know who the hell you think I am, but I'm not killing anyone for ya!"

"What?" a shocked Paradox exclaimed.

"He's not brainwashed?" an equally surprised Kiryu realized.

"You got some nerve knocking me out like that!" Joey continued. "Whoever you are, you're asking for a real beating!"

"How can this be?" Paradox wondered. "There's no reason he'd be immune to my brainwashing!"

Suddenly the area was enveloped in a blinding white light. The light cleared, and the three found they were in the endless white room of the Arc Cradle. The temperature inside the room was ice cold. Z-one then appeared to hover before them.

"Lord Z-one, why have you brought us here?" Paradox asked.

"It seems you've made a grave miscalculation, Paradox." Z-one informed him. "Joey Wheeler was once under the control of Marik Ishtar, the wielder of the Millennium Rod. But with sheer force of will, he was able to break that control. As a result, it seems Mr. Wheeler has become highly resistant to any kind of technological mind control techniques we could use."

"I see. In that case, I shall deploy the other assassin I brought back with me." Paradox decided.

"That will not be necessary." Z-one told him. "I have arranged for an assassin of my own for this duel."

"Just wait a minute!" Joey cut in. "I've got a bone to pick with you weirdoes, whoever you are! Nobody tries brainwashing me to kill someone! Not again!"

Z-one turned to Joey. "I would advice you to stay out of this battle, Mr. Wheeler. Opposing us could very well mean your death."

"Hey, you don't have to get involved." Kiryu told Joey. "These two came after me. It's my fight, so I'll handle it."

"No way, man! I've got a score to settle with these guys now." Joey insisted. "Besides, I'm not the kind of guy who sit by when someone else is in trouble. So I'm gonna help you take these guys down!"

"Hmm… very well. You and Kiryu Kyosuki may both face the assassin I've arranged for together." Z-one agreed.

"And just who is this assassin?" Kiryu asked.

"Like Mr. Wheeler, he is someone else who has been touched by the power of the Millennium Rod." Z-one revealed. "But after at least partially restoring his sanity, I was easily able to convince him to help in my cause. Though he does wish a small price from me if he succeeds."

Before the conversation could continue, the room was washed out by another blinding light. The light cleared and Kiryu and Joey were back on the bridge. Instead of Paradox though, a different rider was with them. He was a scruffy-looking man wearing sunglasses and a helmet painted like the American flag, along with a red shirt, a black leather vest, and tattered jeans. The D-Wheel he was on was a black and red cycle with large grey duel exhaust pipes.

"Well, this really is a great freaking bonus!" the rider laughed. "That freak Z-one told me I'd have to take on two guys at once, but I never expected one of them to be that punk who did me in at Duelist Kingdom."

"Who is this guy?" Kiryu asked.

"No way." A stunned Joey replied. "Bandit Keith?"

* * *

Bruno and the others led Yugi and his two friends to the garage. Yugi was very insistent about coming with to deal with Paradox. But to do that, he needed a D-Wheel. Bruno took them to a small corner of the garage that was blocked off by an orange curtain.

"So this is the pet project you've been working on?" Yusei asked.

"Yeah, I've been restoring an old D-Wheel I found for you to use as a backup in case yours ever needed extensive repair." Bruno explained. "I finished it a few days ago. Anyway, I thought Yugi could use it while he's here."

Bruno pulled back the curtain to reveal a somewhat large D-Wheel covered almost entirely in gold plating. The design of the cycle was similar to Yusei's only without the curved point at the back that served as a backrest.

"It's a little flashy, don't you think?" Aki remarked.

"Yeah, I guess I did get a little carried away trying to make it look cool." Bruno admitted as he rubbed the back of his head. "Anyway, I think Tea can ride it behind Yugi."

"It that thing even safe?" a cautious Tea asked.

"It'll have to do." Yugi decided as he got on the back of the cycle.

"Hey Yugi, are you sure you think you can…?" Yusei began to ask.

Before Yusei could finish his question, Yugi's Millennium Puzzle began to spin around and he was bathed in a mysterious light. When the puzzle stopped spinning, Yugi had somehow grown a bit taller and the features of his face had changed.

"Well? What are we waiting for?" Yugi asked in a deeper more heroic-sounding voice. "Let's get going!"

"…Uh, right!" Yusei agreed. "Let's go, everyone!"

* * *

"Who is this Bandit Keith?" Kiryu asked Joey.

"Guess I shouldn't be surprised that a punk like you has never heard of me." Keith cut in. "I was the number one duelist in America until that son of a bitch, Pegasus humiliated me on national T.V. I was real close to getting back at Pegasus until your buddy Joey there got in my way! But now I can pay him back, big time!"

"Dream on, Keith!" Joey told him. "If you want to take me and my new friend here on, I'll kick you back down into hell where you belong!"

"Then let's do this!" Keith decided.

The three duelists took off down the road at full speed. With the announcement of the duel, the highway system redirected them into the appropriate lane. Keith was the first to make it onto the track.

"Looks like I go first." Keith observed. "And since I can also decide the order of the duel, Joey goes last! Now, I activate the Track Field, The Devil's Highway!"

Suddenly the pavement of the track became cracked and broken, and the walls of the bridge became thick black metal rails. The surrounding area transformed into a ruined city with a few buildings that were partially on fire. The sky above had become blood red.

"I set one monster on the field and end my turn!" Keith announced after drawing his first card.

Kiryu calmly drew his first card. "I activate a Spell card, Contract with the Void! By sending my entire hand to the Graveyard, I can summon one Infernity monster from those cards. Appear now, Infernity General!"

Materializing on the track was a large knight clad in ornate black and gold armor. On his back wore a red cape, an in his right hand he carried a large black sword.

"That ends my turn." Kiryu announced.

"Do you have brain damage or something, punk?" Keith laughed. "What kind of dumb ass move was that throwing out your whole hand just to summon one freaking monster?"

"Uh, Kiryu, wasn't it? As much as I hate to agree with anything that jerk says he does have a point." Joey admitted. "I mean, throwing out your whole hand like that kinda taking a big risk."

"You're known for taking some pretty big risks too." Kiryu pointed out. "From what I've heard about you, you're something of a gambler. I a way, I am too. For me, each card I draw can either help me or cause me to lose."

"Then why do you duel like that?" Joey asked.

"For the thrill." Kiryu smirked. "Isn't that why you use such cards with risky effects?"

"Okay, fair enough." Joey grinned before drawing his card. "Alright, it's my move! First I summon Panther Warrior in Attack Mode!"

Appearing on the track was a humanoid panther clad in blue and gold armor with a matching shield. On his back he wore a green cape, and in his right hand her carried a single saber.

"Next I activate a Spell card, Scapegoat!" Joey announced. "This card lets me summon four Scapegoat tokens to the field!"

Materializing on the track were four stuff sheep. Each one had curved horns and was a different color. One was blue, one was pink, one was yellow, and one was orange.

"Now I sacrifice one of my Scapegoats so Panther Warrior can attack Keith's monster!" Joey announced.

The pink sheep shattered to bits and turned into red energy that went into Panther Warrior's sword. The humanoid feline lunged at the large card Keith had placed on the track, which soon transformed into a red metal sphere with five long metal blades on its sides. The sphere launched itself at Panther Warrior and clamped on to its torso using its blades.

"Oh crap!" Joey cursed.

"You remember my Blast Sphere, right punk?" Keith laughed. "As soon as you start your next turn, my sphere will blow up your freaking panther and inflict its ATK as damage!"

"Damn it! Looks like I screwed up." Joey observed.

"It's not over yet." Kiryu told him. "Since this is technically a tag Turbo Duel, you can attack him using my monster."

"And since Keith's monster is attached to my Panther Warrior, it'll be a direct attack." Joey realized. "Okay then. Infernity General, attack Keith directly! Joey Soul Sword!"

"Uh, actually my general's attack is called Infernity Blade. But okay." Kiryu sweatdropped.

Suddenly a small floating robot dropped down from the sky. The bottom half was a grey saucer-like device with red and green traffic lights on the front. While the top half was a slender red mechanical demon with long horns and a fanged mouth wearing a blue police uniform. The robot got in front of Infernity General and blew a whistle, causing the black knight to stop.

"Hey! What the hell's going on?" Joey demanded to know.

"The Devil's Highway isn't some ordinary track. It's got a special cop that controls the traffic." Keith explained. "Each time one of us declares a direct attack, the cop shows up and flips a coin. If the coin's heads the cop will let the attacking monster pass, but if it's tails the cop will blow up the monster and burn the player with that monster's ATK!"

The mechanical demon cop flipped a copper coin that had the Millennium Eye symbol on one side and nothing on the other. He got the coin as it came down and slapped it onto the back of his other hand. The coin was on its blank side. Laughing, the mechanical cop vaporized Infernity General with a beam from its red traffic light. The beam continued and struck Kiryu and Joey, dropping their life points to 5300.

"How do ya like that, punk?" Keith laughed. "When Z-one gave me this card, he told me your buddy Kiryu had some powerful monster that could attack directly and leave a lot of damage. But thanks to The Devil's Highway, that card's worth crap!"

"I see. So both sides would be taking a huge risk attacking directly." Kiryu observed.

"Damn!" Joey cursed. "Guess I gotta end my turn."

"Then it's my move!" Keith declared as he drew his next card. "I summon Cannon Soldier-MK2 in Attack Mode!"

Materializing on the track was a very large purple and grey robot with no head and a box-like torso. Its grey cylindrical forearms each had three orange rectangular claws that served as hands. Mounted on the top of the machine were two large silver cannons.

"Wait a minute, you big cheat!" Joey protested. "That Cannon Soldier of yours is a level five monster! Which means you need another monster to sacrifice first!"

"Yeah, normally you'd be right. Except that because we're on The Devil's Highway, all Machine monsters can be Normal Summoned with one less tribute." Keith revealed. "Which means a level five monster like my Cannon Soldier can be summoned without sacrificing anything!"

"This isn't good." Kiryu declared.

"Now I play a Spell card, Metal Imp Factory!" Keith announced.

Appearing on the track to hover behind Keith was a large engine-like box made of black and red metal. A large rusted funnel stuck out of the top of the machine, and on the front was a round metal hatch that was split down the middle.

"I activate my factory's effect!" Keith announced. "By sending two Machine monsters from my deck to the Graveyard, I can summon two Metal Imp Tokens to the field!"

Two robots suddenly appeared in the air above the machine. One had a round body with a sword hanging down from the bottom and multiple arms. It had multiple arms, one of them carrying a spear. The other robot was gold in color with a purple dome-like head. On its torso was the face of a slot machine showing three red question marks. The two robots went into the funnel of the Metal Imp Factory. The machine made horrific sounds as it ground up the two robots. The hatch on the front of the sinister device opened up, and out popped two small black mechanical demons, each with a pair of short red horns and red eyes.

"I activate the effect of Cannon Soldier-MK2!" Keith announced. "By sacrificing my two metal Imp Tokens, I can burn you punks with 1500 points of damage!"

The two mechanical imps exploded and turned into electrical energy that went into the Cannon Soldier's back. The large robot aimed its two cannons down at Kiryu and Joey. Two massive beams of blue energy hit both the two duelists, dropping their shared life points to 3800.

"Cannon Soldier, blow away one of those wimpy Scapegoats!" Keith commanded. "Twin Barrel Cannon Blast!"

The Cannon Soldier took aim again and fired two more shots at Joey's orange stuffed sheep. The sheep token was completely vaporized by the blasts.

"I set two cards on the field and end my turn." Keith announced. "You're move, ya handless moron!"

Kiryu calmly drew his next card. "I summon Infernity Beetle in Attack Mode!" A large black beetle flew down onto the track. "Next I banish Infernity General to summon Infernity Shield Bearer and Infernity Sword Bearer from the Graveyard!"

Two knights wearing almost identical sets of black armor appeared on the track. One held a shield in its left hand, and the other held a spear in its right.

"I tune the level two Infernity Beetle into the level three Infernity Sheild Bearer and level three Infernity Spear Bearer for a level eight Synchro Summon!" Kiryu announced.

The large beetle flashed orange and changed into two rings of green light. The rings encircled the two black knights and transformed them into six white stars.

"When the curtain of darkness descends down, the eyes of the underworld will open! Swoop down, darkness!" Kiryu chanted. "Synchro Summon! Show yourself, Hundred Eyes Dragon!"

The lights flashed and erupted into a massive pillar of black energy. The energy quickly subsided to reveal a large black dragon with wings attached to his forearms. Its body was almost completely covered in eyes, with a large purple eye on the front of its chest.

"Wow! That's a pretty cool summon." Joey commented to Kiryu. "But, that monster of yours…"

"What about it?" Kiryu asked.

"Why does it have to be so… creepy?" Joey asked as he went a bit pale. "I mean… all those eyes."

"What the matter, you baby duelist? Afraid of your own pal's monster?" Keith taunted.

"Shut up!" Joey shot back.

"I activate the effect of Hundred Eyes Dragon!" Kiryu announced. "By banishing Infernity Destroyer from my Graveyard, Hundred Eyes Dragon gains its effect until the end of the turn!"

The ghostly image of a dark-grey demon with short horns and large hands appeared on the track. In moments it was sucked into the large central eye on the dragon's chest.

"Hundred Eyes Dragon, attack Cannon Soldier-MK2!" Kiryu commanded. "Infinity Sight Stream!"

The dark dragon fired a massive beam of purple energy at the Cannon Soldier. The large robot exploded in a blast of fire and smoke. Keith's life points dropped down to 6900.

"And now the effect Hundred Eyes Dragon got from Infirnity Destroyer kicks in!" Kiryu announced. "Because it destroyed a monster while I have no cards in my hand, you take 1600 points of damage!"

Hundred Eyes Dragon fired another large beam of purple energy from the central eye of its chest. Keith was struck and his life points dropped down further to 5300.

"You're gonna pay for that, you punk!" Keith angrily declared. "I activate my Trap, The Devil's Landmine! When one of my monsters is destroyed, this landmine takes your monster with it!"

Suddenly the ground beneath Hundred Eyes Dragon exploded in a flash of smoke and flames. The dark dragon was vaporized in an instant.

"Because Hundred Eyes Dragon was destroyed, I can add an Earthbound Immortal to my hand!" Kiryu announced.

"Fair enough. And because we're on The Devil's Highway, The Devil's Landmine let's me draw two extra cards." Keith told him.

"That ends my turn." Kiryu announced.

Joey drew his next card, and upon looking at, grinned. "Hey Kiryu, you know how ya said I take a lot of risks when I duel? Well here's a risk that might just turn this whole thing around."

"Well, we don't really have anything to lose." Kiryu pointed out.

"Okay then, I start by summoning Alligator's Sword in Defense Mode!" Joey announced. Appearing on the track was a humanoid reptile in minimal black armor carrying a saber. "Then I play a Spell card, Reversal Quiz!"

"What the…? What're you trying to pull, punk?" Keith demanded to know.

"First I gotta send all the cards in my hand and on my side of the field to the Graveyard." Joey began. Alligator's Sword and the two stuffed sheep shattered into bits of light. "Then I get to guess what the top card of my deck is. If I guess wrong, nothing happens. But if I guess right, we all switch life points!"

"You really are a gambler." Kiryu smirked.

"You're out of your mind, punk!" Keith grinned. "There's no way you'll guess what card's on the top of your deck!"

"My instincts tell me… it's a monster card!" Joey declared. "Let's find out!"

Joey revealed the top card of his deck. It was a monster card depicting a strange humanoid life form with an odd facemask with red eyes.

"Yeah! I was right!" Joey cheered. "The card on top of my deck was Jinzo, a monster card! Which means Kiryu and I get your life points Keith! You can make do with ours."

Joey and Kiryu both glowed briefly with a blue aura as their life points went up to 5300. At the same time, Keith glowed briefly with a red aura as his life points went down further to 1800.

"That ends my turn." Joey announced.

"You damn freaking sons of bitches!" Keith angrily cursed. "I'll make you both pay for that! I'm gonna paint this highway red with your blood!"

* * *

**Author's Note:** Of all the duels I've written so far for this story, this one has been the most fun. When I was deciding who was going to duel who, I felt Bandit Keith was the perfect choice. But I also felt that it would be a shame for Joey to show up in this story and not duel. So I decided to have him help Kiryu duel Bandit Keith. Plus I have to admit that the duel between Joey and Bandit Keith in the anime/manga, was my favorite duel from the Duelist Kingdom arc (next to the duel between Yugi and Pegasus, of course). Thus we have a duel between three characters who're all gamblers of a sort.

The only hard part of writing this duel was having Joey use Reversal Quiz. I've never really been sure how that cards, and there was a small issue with the sheep tokens. But with the heavy damage Joey and Kiryu took early in the duel, the cards seemed sort of necessary. Plus Reversal Quiz was just one of those cards that Joey never used but should've. So I took a gamble of my own and went ahead with it. I hope everyone liked the first half of this duel.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	9. War of Gamblers

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix.

* * *

Chapter 8: War of Gamblers

Bruno led Yusei and the others to where her had detected the arrival of Paradox's newest assassin. On the way there, Yusei had attempted to contact the rest of the Signers, but found that he could not get a hold of them. Though with Yugi and Jaden both with them, it seemed that the group had all the help they needed. Yugi's two friends, Tea and Mokuba, were coming with as well for support. Tea was riding on the back of the D-Wheel Bruno had lent to Yugi, and Mokuba was riding with Jaden. The group was quickly nearing its destination.

"Hey Yugi, looks like you're getting the hang of that D-Wheel." Jaden noticed.

"Well it's not a horse, but I seem to be getting used to it." Yugi replied.

"Hey, is there any way for you to tell if the assassin that Paradox sent is my brother?" Mokuba asked Bruno.

"I'm afraid not. We won't know who it is until we get there." Bruno answered. Suddenly the consol of his D-Wheel began to beep. "I'm now picking up three D-Wheel signals. One of them is Kiryu's."

"This Kiryu another friend of yours?" Tea asked.

"Yeah." Yusei nodded. "Bruno, you said that there were two other D-Wheel signals?"

"Yeah, and both of them are unregistered." Bruno confirmed.

"Hey, you don't think that Paradox might be having Joey and Kaiba tag team Kiryu." Jesse assumed.

"We have to hurry!" Yugi declared. "Otherwise our two friends will do something they'll end up regretting for the rest of their lives!"

* * *

Keith drew his next card. "Get ready, you punks! I summon another Cannon Solder-MK2 in attack Mode!" A second large purple robot with twin cannons appeared on the track. "Now I activate the effect of Metal Imp Factory and send two more Machines to the Graveyard to summon two more Metal Imp Tokens!"

Two new robots appeared above the engine-like device. One was made mostly of red metal and had a pendulum blade hanging down beneath it. The other was a large green mechanical spider with two large missile launchers mounted on its back. The two robots were fed into the funnel on the top of the machine, causing it to make horrible grinding noises as it broke them down. Moments later, the front of the machine opened and spat out two more mechanical imps.

"I activate Cannon Soldier's effect and sacrifice my two Metal Imps to inflict 1500 points of damage!" Keith announced.

The two imps exploded and turned into electrical energy that went into the Cannon Soldier's back. The robot aimed its two cannons down at Kiryu and Joey and fired. The two duelists were hit, and their life points went down to 3800.

"I'm not done yet! Cannon Solder-MK2, take aim and attack those two directly!" Keith ordered. "Twin Barrel Cannon Blast!"

"Are you nuts Keith?" a shocked Joey asked. "That Soldier of yours has 1900 ATK, and this weird track of yours can send them all right back at ya! If that happens you'll lose!"

As Joey spoke, the Cannon Soldier took aim at Joey and Kiryu again. But just as it did, the mechanical street keeper of The Devil's Highway dropped down in front of it.

"Yeah, you're right about that. The effect of The Devil's Highway is pretty much a game of Russian Roulette." Keith grinned. "Believe me, I know. But as much as I like gambling, I don't have to do it this time! I activate a Continuous Trap, the Devil's Tollbooth! Now whenever the effect The Devil's Highway would activate, I can just discard a card from my hand to stop the effect!"

A few gold coins suddenly dropped from the air into the claw of the mechanical street keeper. The robotic demon chuckled and the green light on its lower half lit up. After that, it got out of the way so the Cannon Soldier could make its shot.

"The best cops are always the one you can bribe!" Keith laughed. "Now blow them away, Cannon Soldier! Show those two punks a living hell!"

Cannon Soldier-MK2 fired another shot at Kiryu and Joey. The two were hit again and their life points dropped down to 1900.

"Well what do ya know? Looks like we're about even now." Keith observed. "I end my turn!"

Kiryu drew his next card. "I summon Infernity Beast in Defense Mode!" Appearing on the track was a black dog with a demonic-looking face. "That ends my turn."

"So that piece of crap monster's the best you can do, huh?" Keith laughed. "Serves ya right for throwing out your whole hand!"

"Hey Keith, I wouldn't be laughing if I were you." Joey grinned as he began his turn. "You forget, I just drew a powerful monster. I summon Jinzo!"

Appearing on the track was a humanoid cyborg wearing green armor and robes. His head was bald and had several pronounced veins. Attached to his head with three black leather straps was a grey mask with red lenses.

"Wait just a damn minute!" Keith protested. "Jinzo's a level six monster! Which means you need to sacrifice another monster to summon it!"

"Yeah, normally I'd have to do that." Joey admitted. "Accept Jinzo's also a Machine monster! And thanks to your Devil's Highway, all Machine monsters can be summoned with one less sacrifice!"

"Damn!" Keith cursed.

"Jinzo, blow that Cannon Soldier away!" Joey commanded. "Cyber Energy Shock!"

Jinzo formed a swirling back of black and purple energy between his hands. The cyborg launched the projectile at the Cannon Soldier, causing the machine to explode into a flash of smoke and flames. Keith scowled as his life points dropped down to 1300.

"Looks like we're not so even now, huh Keith?" Joey smirked. "I end my turn!"

Keith drew his next card, and upon looking at it grinned. "You two are dead now! I discard two cards to summon the ruler of The Devil's Highway, Highway Devil King!"

Appearing on the track was a very large mechanical monster that was almost twenty feet tall. Its lower half was similar to the body of a rusted grey tank with black treads. It upper half meanwhile was that of a mechanical demon similar to the type of robot used as the main attraction of monster truck shows. Its upper torso was painted red, as were its claws, while the rest of its body was grey, save for the red horns on its metal skull-like head. Its eyes blazed red like fire, and mounted on its right shoulder was a large gatling gun.

"That thing looks nasty!" Joey declared.

"And it's got 2800 ATK." Kiryu added. "This could be real trouble.

"Highway Devil King, blow away that Infernity Beast!" Keith commanded. "Full Metal Carnage!"

The mechanical demon aimed its gun down at Kiryu's monster and blasted it with a hale of bullets. The demon hound was shattered to bits upon being hit.

"Wait a sec, why'd he attack Infernity Beast?" Joey wondered. "It was in Defense Mode."

"Because once per turn, when my Devil King destroys a monster, I can remove a Machine monster from my Graveyard to let it attack again." Keith revealed. "Plus it gains 1000 ATK!"

"Oh crud!" Joey cursed.

"Highway Devil King, blow Jinzo away!" Keith commanded. "Full Metal Carnage!"

The metal demon took aim at Jinzo and fired. The cyborg's torso was shot full of holes before finally exploding into flames. Joey and Kiryu's life points dropped to 500.

"I end my turn." Keith announced. "And the best part is that Highway Devil King keeps all the ATK it gains from its effect. Face it, punks. You're as good as screwed."

Before the duel could continue, Yusei and the others finally arrive. Yugi and Tea sped up next to Joey.

"Yugi! Tea! You wound up here too?" a surprised Joey observed.

"Joey, you have to stop this!" Tea begged. "Paradox is controlling you! And if you don't stop, the person you're dueling could die!"

"What the…? You dumb girl! I'm not brainwashed!" an insulted Joey protested. "I've been helping my new pal Kiryu this whole time!"

"Oh, you're not?" Tea blinked. "But that Yusei guy…"

"Look, the guy who nabbed me and some floating coma said I couldn't be brainwashed because Marik used his Millennium Rod on me that one time." Joey explained.

"Well look who showed up!" Keith laughed. "That little cheering section of yours really does follow you everywhere, huh Joey?"

"Bandit Keith?" a surprised Yugi observed. "He's the assassin?"

"Yeah, and he's just as psycho as ever." Joey confirmed.

"Hold on. Marik once used the Millennium Rod on him too." Yugi recalled. "So how could Paradox brainwash him?"

"Hey. I'm not brainwashed either." Keith told him. "I'm helping that freak Z-one because I want to, not because he made me?"

"You're willingly helping Z-one with his cause?" a surprised Bruno asked.

"Yeah, but I got my own reasons." Keith revealed. "I don't give a crap about the world blowing up in the future, or whatever the hell he's trying to stop. I'm in this for me. See if I win this duel, Z-one said he'd help me change history and get my revenge on Pegasus once and for all."

"So you're doing this all for your desire for revenge?" Kiryu asked.

"Let me ask you something, Kiryu. Have you ever seen hell?" Keith asked. "Well I have! In hell, the only thing that matters is getting out alive, even if it means killing someone. All that matters is saving your own skin. And to get out of my hell, I've gotta go through Pegasus. So this is nothing personal, kid. Well, at least not as far as you're involved. I've still got a score to settle with your pal Joey."

"I see…" Kiryu replied. "To answer your question, I have seen hell. I was there for a long time. And I can tell you that what you think is the way out of your hell is only an illusion."

"What'd you say?" Keith asked.

"Even if you did get your revenge, in the end you'd still have nothing. You'd still be in hell." Kiryu told him. "The only true way out of hell is to fight for those you care about. Which is why I can't give up now!"

Suddenly the mark on Kiryu's right arm began to glow with a purple light. At the same time, the top card of Kiryu's deck began to glow blue.

Kiryu drew the card from his deck. "I summon Spirit Cleanser Field Exorcist!"

Appearing on the track was a small and somewhat humanoid figure wearing blue robes. The only part of its face that was visible was a pair of large round yellow eyes, and atop its head it wore a simple silver helmet with a small spike on top and a blue cloth hanging down around the sides. On the front of its was a silver plate of armor.

"Since I summoned Fiend Exorcist, I can summon Earthbound Immortal Ccapac Apu!" Kiryu announced. A pillar of blue light shot up from the ground right outside the track, fading to reveal a shadowy giant with blue lines on its body. "I tune the level two Fiend Exorcist into the level ten Ccapac Apu for a level twelve Synchro Summon!"

Fiend Exorcist's eyes flashed before he turned into two rings made of white light. The rings expanded and encircled Ccapac Apu.

"A holy resonance reverberates through the land! Its power casts away the darkness to reveal the light within!" Kiryu chanted. "Synchro Summon! Reveal yourself, Earthbound Guardian Ccapac Apu!"

The rings of light closed in around the giant and caused its body to light up in a blinding flash. The light soon cleared to reveal that the giant's form had changed. Ccapac Apu had turned white and had gained a more muscular and benevolent appearance. Its once dome-like head had gained a neck and a chine. On its face was a single eye consisting of a blue circle around a small blue dot.

"What the hell?" Keith exclaimed.

"Wow! That monster's huge!" Tea observed.

"I now use Ccapac Apu's effect on Highway Devil King!" Kiryu announced. "Until the end of this turn, Highway Devil King's effects are negated and Ccapac Apu gains half its ATK!"

Several blue lights flew out of the mechanical demon's body, causing its red eyes to shut down and go black. The lights all flew up into Ccapac Apu's eye.

"End this duel, Ccapac Apu!" Kiryu commanded. "Guardian Fist!"

The white giant swung its fist down and struck Highway Devil King, causing the metal demon to explode. The force of the explosion knocked Keith off of his D-Wheel as his life points dropped to zero. With the duel over, Ccapac Apu vanished and the area around the track returned to normal.

Kiryu pulled up in front of Keith. "How pathetic you are. An opponent like you could never satisfy me."

"What did you say, you little…?" Keith began to curse as he got back to his feet.

"I'm afraid a performance like this will not satisfy Lord Z-one either." A familiar voice spoke. Everyone looked to see Paradox on the road.

"Just give me another chance." Keith requested. "That punk Kiryu just got a lucky shot. Next time, I'll blow him and Joey away!"

"You've had your chance, Bandit Keith." Paradox told him. "And since you were unable to hold up your end of the bargain, you shall be returned to when Lord Z-one found you."

"Wait!" Keith began to beg, but before he could finish he and his D-Wheel vanished in a flash of pink light.

"Paradox!" Yugi shouted, getting the android's attention.

"So, you have chased me through the time stream as well, eh Nameless Pharaoh?" Paradox observed.

"You have no right to use our friends against us!" Yugi told him. "Now return Kaiba at once!"

"Yeah, and give back Alexis while you're at it!" Jaden added.

"Don't worry, you'll see them soon enough." Paradox smirked before vanishing in a flash of pink light.

"Damn!" Jaden cursed. "He got away again!"

"Don't worry. I'm sure we'll get another chance." Yusei assured them. "In the meantime, let's get back to my place for now."

* * *

Once everyone had gotten back to the Fudo mansion, Yusei explained to Yugi and his friends everything that was going on. It was a little much for them to take in.

"So this is really the future?" Joey asked, still in disbelief.

"I still want to know how we're going to get back home after all this is over." Tea cut in.

"Don't worry. I'm sure will figure out something." Yusei assured her.

"In the meantime, it seems we've still got bigger things to worry about." Yugi pointed out, still as his other self. "There's not just rescuing Kaiba or Jaden's friend. There are the lives of the people in this city. Z-one has to be stopped!"

"So does that mean you'll help us?" Yusei asked.

"Of course." Yugi answered. "This battle has now become everyone's. I'll help you however I can."

"Count me in too." Joey agreed.

"Thanks." Yusei replied. "I'm sure with duelists like you on our side, there's no way we'll lose to Z-one."

* * *

Paradox entered the endless white room of the Arc Cradle. As usual, Z-one was floating in the room's center. He wasn't sure how the cyborg was going to react to the news of an assassin he had handpicked himself had lost. Plus there was the news that Yusei had just gained another powerful ally.

Z-one turned to face Paradox. "What is it?"

"Bandit Keith has just be defeated, my lord." Paradox reported. "And through my carelessness, Yugi Muto has now come to Neo Domino and is aiding the Signers."

"I see." Z-one indifferently replied. "Which means that they now have the aid of both the Nameless Pharaoh and the Supreme King."

"The fault is entirely mine, Lord Z-one." Paradox told him. "I take full responsibility."

"It matters not." Z-one replied as he turned away. "At this stage, the Signers could have a thousand allies from the past and they still will not be able to stop us. With that last duel, we are now far closer to our ultimate goal."

"You mean… it will soon be time?" Paradox asked.

"Send your next assassin, Paradox." Z-one ordered. "Only a few more duels, and Neo Domino City will finally fall."

"It shall be done, my lord." Paradox gladly replied. "And I shall start by sending Mr. Kaiba to pay them a visit."

* * *

**Author's Note:** The duel in these last two chapters didn't end the way i had originally envisioned. I was planning to have Joey summon Red-Eyes Black Dragon, for one thing. But this is just how things sort of naturally progressed. So I hope everyone likes how this duel ended. Anyway, Kaiba will be the next opponent in this story. And I'm sure by now everyone has guessed who he'll be up against.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	10. The Prideful Duelists, Part 1

**Author's Note:** The original title of these next two chapters was going to be, _Battle of the Giant Egos_. But I didn't think it was very creative. So I went with something else. Still, I think that title would've been very appropriate. Anyway, on with the duel I'm sure everyone's been waiting for.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix.

* * *

Chapter 9: The Prideful Duelists, Part 1

Yusei finally got a hold of the other Signers only two hours after Kiryu and Joey's duel against Bandit Keith. Right away, Crow rode over to the Fudo mansion with Raven and Sect, almost breaking a few speed laws on the way. After all, they had gotten the chance to meet two of the most famous duelists in history. Though Crow and Sect were a little more excited about it than Raven. Once they pulled up, the three of them headed straight for the drawing room. Yusei and the others were in the room waiting for them.

Crow stopped before Yugi and Joey. "Wow! The living legends themselves."

"Hey man, I'm Joey." The gambling duelist greeted.

"I know who you are." Crow replied as he excitedly shook Joey's hand. "I'm Crow Hogan."

"So Kiryu, you really got to duel alongside Joey Wheeler?" Sect asked.

"Yeah, and that's not all." Kiryu replied with a serious expression. "I got to meet Z-one too."

"What was that Z-one guy like?" Jaden asked.

"He seemed cold." Kiryu answered. "It's like he didn't have any emotion at all."

"Yeah, that's kinda the feeling I got too." Joey agreed. "He warned me about getting involved Kiryu's duel, but he didn't seem to care if I lived or died."

"I wonder what could've made Z-one like that?" Raven asked.

"Well, the guy did live through the end of the world, just like Aporia, Bruno, and Paradox." Crow pointed out. "That'd probably mess up anyone. No offense, Bruno."

"None taken." Bruno replied. "But there was something else that happened to Z-one that made him the way he is now."

"Do you know what it was?" Yusei asked.

"I'm afraid not." Bruno replied. "My memory is still incomplete. But I do know that whatever it was happened right when the Meklord Invasion began."

Before the conversation could go further, Carly ran into the room and went right up to Yugi, who since the duel had changed back to his normal self. In one swift motion, she pulled out her camera and took a picture, the flash going off inches away from his face.

"Hey! Do you mind?" Tea protested.

"Carly, maybe you should save the pictures for another time." Aki suggested.

"Sorry, I'm just really excited to meet two of the three biggest duelists in history." Carly apologetically replied.

"Well hey, you can take all the pictures of me that you want." Joey offered. "Try and get my good side, okay?"

"Where's Jack?" Yusei asked Carly.

"Oh, he wasn't really interested in coming." Carly replied between snapping pictures of Joey. "You know how he's been about this whole assassins from the past thing."

Suddenly the handheld device on Bruno's belt started to beep, causing the blue-haied mechanic to look. "Guys! There's been another temporal distortion."

"Paradox just sent his next assassin." Yusei realized.

"Which means it might be Alexis." Jaden assumed.

"Or Kaiba." Yugi added.

"Do we really need to go to the trouble of saving that jerk?" Joey asked. "Paradox can have 'em for all I care."

"How can you say that about my brother?" Mokuba protested.

The puzzle hanging from Yugi's neck began to spin, causing him to change into his other self. "Let's get going! Whoever it is needs to be stopped!"

With that, the entire group began to ride out to where Bruno detected the distortion. On the way there, Yusei gave Jack another call and got him to agree to meet with them. After a few minutes, they finally arrived at the spot. Parked there waiting for them on a white D-Wheel styled like a dragon with blue eyes was a young man wearing a white riding helmet with a white sleeveless coat and a black shirt.

"Kaiba!" Yugi identified.

"Oh man, it's really him." Crow confirmed. "The legendary Seto Kaiba."

"Well Yugi, I certainly didn't expect to see you here." Kaiba chuckled. "I'll be more than glad to have a rematch with you later. But right now I have a job to do, killing those new friends of yours."

"Snap out of it Kaiba! This isn't you!" the Pharaoh reminded him. "You're not a killer, you're a duelist! Paradox has brainwashed you!"

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Kaiba coldly replied. "Now get out of my way."

"Seto, please stop!" Mokuba begged. "You don't really don't want to do this!"

"Silence, Mokuba!" Kaiba shot back. "A child like you could never understand what I have to do!"

"Forget it, you guys. There's no getting through to Kaiba like this." Yusei told them. "The only way to turn Kaiba back to his normal self is to beat him."

"So, which of you losers wants to challenge me first?" Kaiba dared.

Just as Yusei was about to pull forward, Jack suddenly sped in and got between Kaiba and the others. Upon seeing Kaiba, Jack burst out laughing.

Jack's laughter caused Kaiba to glare at him. "You dare to laugh at me?"

"Well, I never thought Paradox would get so desperate to that he'd send an old fossil like you after us." Jack grinned. "Don't get me wrong, it's because of that company of yours that dueling has become what it is today. But as far as duelists go, you're nothing but a has been."

"How dare you call me a has been you no-name scum!" Kaiba shouted. "Do you know who I am? I happen to be the rightful king of all duelists!"

"No-name scum?" an insulted Jack shot back. "Listen, you old fossil! There's only one king of duelists and that's me! The greatest duelist of all time, Jack Atlas! And I can duel circles around a relic like you!"

"I don't believe it! This future has its own Kaiba!" Joey remarked.

"I'm starting to wonder if my brother's really brainwashed." Mokuba admitted.

"That's it! You'll be the first to die, Atlas!" Kaiba decided.

"Bring it on, gramps!" Jack dared.

"Uh, Jack…?" Yusei began.

"Stay out of this, Yusei!" Jack told him. "This old fool has just made things personal!"

Jack and Kaiba took off down the road at full speed, causing the others to follow. With the announcement of the duel, the highway system redirected them onto an available track. Jack pulled far ahead of Kaiba and made it onto the track first.

"Tack Field, activate!" Jack called out. "Resonator Village!"

The area around the track transformed into a large village with several small huts and tuning forks sticking out of the ground. The walls of the track changed into rails linked between gold tuning forks.

"I summon Force Resonator in Defense Mode!" Jack announced.

Appearing on the track was a small robed demon wearing a sort of horned helmet that only showed its red eyes and grinning mouth. On its back was a large ornate sphere.

"That ends my turn." Jack announced.

"That pathetic little monster is the best defense you can come up with?" Kaiba laughed as he drew his first card. "I'll destroy that little imp of yours in an instant! I summon Kaibaman in Attack Mode!"

Appearing on the track was a man who was dressed almost exactly like Kaiba. The only differences were that he had long reddish-brown hair and wore a white mask resembling the face of a dragon.

"I activate Kaibaman's effect!" Kaiba announced. "By sacrificing him, I can summon my most powerful monster from my hand! Come forth, Blue-Eyes White Dragon!"

Kaibaman shattered to bits and a twister suddenly formed on the field. The twister quickly faded to reveal a magnificent dragon with bluish-white scales and very striking blue eyes.

"Blue-Eyes! Obliterate that pathetic monster!" Kaiba commanded. "Burst Stream of Destruction!"

The dragon reared back its head and blasted Force Resonator with a stream of white electricity. The small demon was completely vaporized by the attack. But Jack's response was to merely yawn.

"What? You dare treat the attack of the most powerful card in all of _Duel Monsters_ like it was nothing?" an insulted Kaiba asked.

"Oh sure, the Blue-Eyes White Dragon was the most powerful card back in the Stone Age." Jack scoffed. "But today there are tons of cards that are more than a match for it. That gecko of yours is nothing but a flashy monster with decent ATK."

"I'll make you eat those words!" Kaiba declared. "But for now I'll end my turn."

"Great, just what we needed. Jack in stereo." Crow sarcastically remarked.

"I kinda like how they're going at it, though." Joey admitted.

"Yeah, it is kinda funny." Crow ginned.

Jack drew his next card. "Time to show you what true power is! Since you have a monster on the field, I summon Mist Archfiend in Attack Mode!"

Appearing on the track was a demon with a body made mostly out of a strange orange mist. The parts of its body that weren't mist were black and skeletal.

"I activate the effect of Resonator Village and summon a Resonator monster from my hand!" Jack announced. "Come forth, Flare Resonator!"

Materializing on the track was another small demon almost identical to Force Resonator. A large red flame burned on its back, and in its hands it held a tuning fork and a metal rod.

"I tune the level three Flare Resonator into the level five Mist Archfiend for a level eight Synchro Summon!" Jack announced.

Flare Resonator clinked its tuning fork and changed into three rings of green light. The rings encircled Mist Archfiend and changed the demon into five white stars.

"The ruler's heartbeats will now file through here! Take witness to its creation-shaking power!" Jack chanted. "Synchro Summon! My very soul, Red Dragon Archfiend!"

The lights flashed and erupted into a pillar of red flames. The flames soon cleared to reveal a demonic-looking red and black dragon with curved horns.

"No way!" Mokuba exclaimed. "A dragon as strong as my brother's?"

"This is what a real dragon looks like!" Jack declared. "And thanks to Flare Resonator's effect, Red Dragon Archfiend gains 300 extra ATK!"

"Am I supposed to be impressed?" Kaiba scoffed.

"Red Dragon Archfiend, take out that pathetic lizard!" Jack commanded. "Absolute Power Force!"

A large ball of flames formed in the dark dragon's claw. Red Dragon Archfiend slammed the ball into the Blue-Eyes, shattering the dragon of light to bits. Kaiba's life points dropped slightly to 3700.

"Yeah! Go get 'em, Jack!" Carly cheered. "If anyone can beat a duelist like Kaiba, it's you!"

"That attack wasn't even a scratch." Kaiba scoffed. "That's the best this all powerful dragon of yours can do?"

"I'm just getting started, you old dinosaur." Jack grinned. "For now, I set two cards on the field and end my turn."

Kaiba drew his next card and smirked. "I'll admit that this Red Dragon of yours is a decent monster, but it's only an imitation compared to me Blue-Eyes."

"Big talk, considering I just got rid of that lizard of yours last turn." Jack pointed out.

"Gloat while you can! I banish a second Blue-Eyes from my deck to summon Malefic Blue-Eyes White dragon!" Kaiba announced.

A second version of the white dragon appeared on the track. Its face was covered in a black mask and its wings had gained black armor with white trim.

"That's one of Paradox's cards!" Yusei quickly identified.

"So that flashy gecko of yours has a new mask." Jack scoffed. "It's still weaker than my Red Dragon Archfiend!"

"Not for long! I activate the Spell card, Shrink!" Kaiba announced. "This card cuts the original ATK power of your Red Dragon in half!"

Red Dragon Archfiend began to glow with a green aura and shrink in size. When it was over, the demon dragon was only half its original size and was dwarfed by Kaiba's dragon.

"Malefic Blue-Eyes! Destroy that imitation dragon!" Kaiba commanded. "Sin Burst Stream!"

The white dragon reared back its head and fired a stream of white lightning at the other dragon. Red Dragon Archfiend was vaporized by the attack. Jack's life points dropped down to 2700.

"Nice try! I activate my Trap, Descending Lost Star!" Jack announced. "With this card, I summon Red Dragon Archfiend back to the field at one level lower in Defense Mode!" The demon dragon reappeared on the track.

"That's the best you can do?" Kaiba chuckled.

"I'm not done yet!" Jack continued. "Next I activate my other Trap, Red Carpet! Since I have a Dragon-type Synchro monster on the field, I can summon two Resonator monsters from my Graveyard! Appear now, Force Resonator and Flare Resonator!"

Red Dragon Archfiend's shadow turned red and stretched out onto the track. The two Resonator demons flew out of the shadow and took their places next to the demon dragon.

"What a pathetic defense." Kaiba mocked. "I'll set two of my own cards on the field and end my turn!"

Jack drew his next card. "Time to show you the full power of my ultimate dragon! I tune the level two Force Resonator and the level three Flare Resonator into the level seven Red Dragon Archfiend for a level twelve Synchro Summon!"

Flare Resonator clinked its tuning fork while Force Resonator shot bolts of yellow lightning into the air from his fingertips. The two demons then changed into five rings made of red fire. The rings encircled Red Dragon Archfiend and formed into a fireball. Jack's eyes began to glow red and the mark on his arm flared to life.

"The King and The Devil, here and now, shall become as one! A Raging Spirit! Lift up the very cries of Creation itself!" Jack chanted. "Synchro Summon! Come forth, Red Nova Dragon!"

The fireball exploded to reveal a new slightly larger dragon. It was was mainly bright red and dark black and had four large blade-like wings on its back. Blade-like spikes also ran down the length of his back, and the end of its tail resembled a large axe. On the back its head it had a large horn that went straight back, while on the sides of his head were two smaller horns that curved forward. Adorning the front of the dragon's chest was a small blue diamond.

"Amazing!" a stunned Yugi declared. "The power I'm sensing from that dragon is immense."

"He's not kidding." Yubel told Jaden as she appeared next to him. "That dragon's even making me nervous."

"I know what you mean." Jaden agreed. "That's no ordinary monster Jack just summoned."

"Get ready, you old fossil!" Jack told Kaiba. "I'm about to blow you all the way back to the Stone Age where you came from!"

* * *

**Author's Note:** So far, this has been one of the most fun chapters I've written for this story. The crossover movie did good showing Yugi, Jaden, and Yusei working together. But it missed out on showing how characters like Kaiba and Jack would get along. So now we get to see it. I hope everyone's enjoyed this duel so far. Stay tuned for part two.

In the meantime, please review and let me know what you think.


	11. The Prideful Duelists, Part 2

**Author's Note:** We now continue our story with _The Prideful Duelists_ or _Battle of the Giant Egos, Part 2_. Please enjoy.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix.

* * *

Chapter 10: The Prideful Duelists, Part 2

"Red Nova Dragon gains 500 ATK for each Tuner monster in my Graveyard." Jack revealed. "All that plus the 300 point boost from Flare Resonator means that his ATK is now 4800!"

"Man! Jack just turned this whole duel around." Crow observed.

"Yeah. Never thought I'd see anyone out-Kaiba Kaiba." Joey replied.

"An impressive monster." Kaiba chuckled. "But I'm afraid you've just dug your own grave! I activate my face down cards! Ring of Destruction and Ring of Defense!"

A metal ring suddenly appeared around Red Nova's neck. The outer edge of the ring was lined with hand grenades. At the same time, a second ring appeared to float alongside Kaiba. The ring rotated around and its outer edge was lined with four decorative shield panels.

"Oh no! It's one of Kaiba's most destructive combos!" Yugi exclaimed.

"Ring of Destruction destroys your monster and inflicts damage to both players equal to that monster's ATK." Kaiba explained. "But Ring of Defense protects me from taking any damage at all. And with the ATK of your dragon so high, this means you lose! Now die, you pathetic upstart!"

The ring around Red Nova's neck exploded, shrouding Jack in a cloud of thick grey smoke. Kaiba grinned in triumph, but when the smoke cleared he saw that Red Nova was still on the track. Not only that, Jack's life points were untouched.

"What! How the hell did your monster survive?" Kaiba demanded to know.

"Nice try, but my Red Nova Dragon can't be destroyed by my opponent's card effects." Jack explained with a cocky grin. "Especially not by a card as pathetic as that one."

"That dragon's as strong as Yugi's Egyptian God cards!" Joey declared.

"Red Nova! Destroy that pathetic gecko of Kaiba's!" Jack commanded. "Burning Soul!"

Red Nova's body became enveloped in flames. The demon dragon flew full speed into the Malefic Blue-Eyes, completely shattering it to bits. Kaiba's life points dropped down to 1900.

"That ends my turn." Jack announced.

"Both Jack and Kaiba are equally matched." Yugi commented. "This is truly an impressive duel."

"Yeah. It's too bad there's so much at stake though." Yusei pointed out. "Otherwise this would be a lot more fun to watch."

Kaiba drew his next card with a scowl, but upon seeing the card his scowl became a grin. "Get ready, you no-name duelist! I'm now about to summon my ultimate monster! I remove my Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon from my deck to summon Malefic Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon!"

Suddenly appearing on the track was a larger three-headed version of the Blue-Eyes. Each head had a mask covering it. The dragon's left head wore a black mask with white trim, while the right head wore a mask with the opposite color scheme. The center head meanwhile had a mask that was white with black trim on the left side and black with white trim on the right side. On each of its necks, the dragon wore a black metal collar lined with white spikes. It massive wings were covered in white armor with black trim.

"Is that dragon supposed to scare me?" Jack scoffed. "Red Nova is still 300 points stronger than that three-headed gecko of yours."

"I don't need to bother with that imitation dragon of yours!" Kaiba told him. "My Malefic Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon can attack directly!"

"No way! A monster that strong can attack directly?" a shocked Tea exclaimed.

"That thing's way too overpowered!" Joey protested.

"Malefic Blue-Eyes! Obliterate this fool!" Kaiba commanded. "Ultimate Sin Burst!"

"I activate Red Nova's effect!" Jack quickly announced. "By banishing him from the field until the end of the turn, I can negate the attack of your Malefic Ultimate Gecko!"

The ultimate dragon fired three blasts of white electrical energy from all three of its heads that united into a single powerful stream. But before the blast could hit Jack, Red Nova vanished and left a pillar of red flames in his place. The fiery pillar blocked the attack from the three-headed dragon.

"That move might've worked on a duelist like Crow, but it had no chance against me." Jack remarked.

"Hey! What the hell did you just say about me?" Crow protested.

"Crow, now's not the time." Raven pointed out. "Let it go."

"Fine. I end my turn." Kaiba scowled. As soon as the turn ended, Red Nova reappeared in a burst of flames.

Jack drew his next card. "Time to bring this duel to an end."

"And how do you expect to do that?" Kaiba asked. "In case you haven't noticed, your dragon lost the extra 300 ATK it got from that small-fry monster of yours when it left the field, which means both our dragons are equally matched."

"That's about to change." Jack smirked. "I summon Mad Archfiend to the field in Attack Mode!"

Appearing on the track was a demon with wild red hair. The only part of his face that could be seen was his yellow eyes. He had animal skulls on over his shoulders like armor, and in the large mouth on his torso was a white human skull.

"Next, I summon Clock Resonator with the effect of Resonator Village!" Jack announced.

Materializing on the track was another small demon that was virtually identical to Jack's other Resonator monsters. Mounted on its back was a very large clock that showed the numbers, twelve, three, five, and nine on its face.

"I tune the level three Clock Resonator into the level four Mad Archfiend for a level seven Synchro Summon!" Jack announced.

Clock Resonator clinked his tuning fork and the hands on its clock rotated around until the clock dinged. The small demon then changed into three rings of green light that encircled Mad Archfiend and changed him into four white stars.

"Lord of Chaos who rules the Underworld! Arise from the depths and crush these weaklings!" Jack chanted. "Synchro Summon! Appear before us, Chaos King Archfiend!"

The lights flashed and ignited into a pillar of flames. The flames quickly subsided to reveal a slender demon wearing blue and red garments. Its face was a golden mask with red eyes, and its head seemed to be made out of red smoke. On its back were two long flame-covered spikes, and the demon had similar spikes on both its forearms.

"And just what was the point of summoning that pathetic monster?" Kaiba asked.

"I thought even someone like you would've figured it out, you old relic." Jack replied. "Because I used Clock Resonator was used for a Synchro Summon, I now have three Tuner monsters in my Graveyard. Which means Red Nova's ATK is now 5000!"

"The only card Kaiba has on the field is that Malefic Ultimate Dragon." Jaden observed. "And Jack's Chaos King Archfiend has 2600 ATK."

"Which means if both of Jack's attacks get through, he'll win!" Yugi concluded.

"Red Nova Dragon, destroy that overgrown gecko!" Jack commanded. "Burning Soul!"

The demon dragon became shrouded again in flames as he flew full speed at the ultimate dragon. The Malefic Blue-Eyes shattered to bits and Kaiba's life points dropped slightly to 1400.

"Chaos King Archfiend, attack that fossil directly and end this duel!" Jack commanded. "Chaos Inferno!"

The Chaos King launched a stream of flames from his claws. The flames hit Kaiba in the back, knocking him out and dropping his life points to zero. With the duel ended, Jack's monsters vanished and the area around the track returned to normal. Kaiba's D-Wheel came to a complete stop. Yusei and the others pulled up and Mokuba and Yugi both ran to Kaiba's side.

"Seto, are you okay?" a worried Mokuba asked.

"Don't worry. He should be fine." Yusei assured him. "He's just been knocked out."

"This is indeed a surprising result." A familiar voice cut in. Everyone looked to see that Paradox had arrived. "I was sure that the second most powerful duelist in history would've been more than a match for any of you."

"You really have underestimated us, haven't you?" Jack remarked. "Why don't you stop playing around with these old relics and come after us seriously? This is starting to get a little old."

"Indeed." Paradox agreed. "Perhaps I have been taking you far too lightly. I've been comparing your level of skill against the levels of the assassins I've sent after you so far. And it seems that you've been on equal terms with all of them."

"Then why not put an end to this!" Yusei demanded. "If you're going to come after us Paradox, than come after us yourself!"

"All in due time, perhaps." Paradox replied. "But for now, I shall take my leave. You can keep Seto Kaiba, as I no longer have a use for him."

With that, Paradox outstretched his hand and took the two Malefic monster cards he had given Kaiba. After that, he vanished in another flash of pink light.

"Looks like we're not finished with Paradox yet." Jaden observed.

"C'mon, let's get Kaiba out of here." Yusei decided.

* * *

Kaiba awoke to find that he was unfamiliar bed. His bed was throbbing like it had just been in a vice. Slowly he sat up and saw Mokuba by his bedside. Yugi was in the room as well, still as his other self.

"Seto, you're okay!" a relieved Mokuba observed.

"What the hell happened to me?" Kaiba asked. "Where am I?"

"Kaiba, what's the last thing you remember?" Yugi asked.

"I remember someone disrupting the opening of my tournament," Kaiba began. He glanced over across the room and saw Jack standing with Yusei, Aki, and Carly, "then that blonde upstart over there beat me!"

"So you remember me. I'm touched." Jack sarcastically replied.

"You no-name punk!" Kaiba shouted as he quickly got out of bed. "I'll make you pay for that duel!"

"I'd like to see you try." Jack dared. "A five-year-old could beat an old relic like you."

"Hey pal! You only beat my brother 'cause he wasn't himself!" Mokuba told him.

"That's right! I don't know what exactly happened to me, but you only had a lucky shot against me!" Kaiba declared. "There's no way you could've won if I was myself!"

"Then why don't we go outside so you can prove it?" Jack suggested. "Brainwashed or not, you still wouldn't have a chance against someone of my level."

"You'll pay for those words, you arrogant weakling!" Kaiba shot back.

"Okay, break it up you two!" Raven told them as she walked into the room. "If you guys wanna fight to see who's bigger, do it later. Right now, Kaiba needs a little time to rest!"

"Raven's right, Jack. You should've give it a rest for now." Carly suggested.

"Fine. I've had my laugh for today." Jack agreed.

"I suppose that I really am in no condition to duel right now." Kaiba relented. "But I would like an explanation about what's going on here!"

"I think I can help with that." Yusei replied as he stepped forward. "Kaiba, my name's Yusei Fudo. And right now, we could really use your help."

With that, Yusei told Kaiba all about how Paradox had brainwashed him to become an assassin. And of how Z-one was trying to destroy Neo Domino to change the future. The whole time, Kaiba listened with a very skeptical expression.

"So let me get this straight. You expect me to believe that this is the future." Kaiba scoffed. "I find that hard to believe."

"Kaiba, will you put aside you skepticism for now and help us?" Yugi requested. "Right now, Yusei and his friends need all the help they can get."

Kaiba ignored Yugi and turned to Yusei. "Let me get one thing straight Yusei, or whatever your name is. I don't give a damn about you or this future of yours. Still, that man Paradox used me for his own game! I won't allow that insult to pass! I'll help you, but only so that I can destroy Paradox for what he's done!"

"Thanks." Yusei replied.

"As if your help would add very much." Jack sarcastically remarked.

"Watch it, you worthless piece of trash!" Kaiba shot back.

"What the hell did you just call me?" Jack demanded to know.

"C'mon Jack, let's go home." Carly told him as she pulled Jack by the arm. "You two can insult each other all you want tomorrow."

* * *

Yusei stood out on the balcony looking up at the night sky. There was much he had on his mind. He kept thinking about all the duels he and the rest of the Signers had fought so far against Paradox's assassins and it seemed like there was something that wasn't adding up.

Aki walked out onto the balcony to join him. "Beautiful night out, huh?"

"Yeah." Yusei agreed.

"Are you worried about Paradox's next move?" she asked.

"Not as much as before." Yusei admitted. "Not when we have so many powerful duelists from the past of our own helping us."

"Yeah. Though it would be nice if Jack and Kaiba could get along." Aki noted.

"I think the sun would explode before that happened." Yusei chuckled.

"So what is on your mind?" Aki asked.

"I keep thinking about how Bruno once said that Z-one and I were a lot alike." Yusei told her.

"You know, I don't believe that for a minute." Aki denied. "There's no way a man like you would try and destroy a city full of innocent people."

"I don't believe it either." Yusei admitted. "I mean it does bug me a little, but can't really believe that Z-one and I would be anything alike. Still… I've been trying to get into his head to figure out what he's up to."

"What do you mean?" Aki asked.

"All these duels we've had to fight against Paradox's assassins. I feel like there's something more to them." Yusei explained. "It almost feels like Paradox isn't trying his hardest to destroy us. I think that maybe there's another reason for all these duels."

"But what could it be?" Aki wondered.

"I don't know." Yusei replied. "But I feel like there's something we're not seeing."

* * *

Paradox found Z-one in the chamber with the crystal statue of Aki. The old cyborg floated before the statue in silence as if he were visiting a grave. Paradox caught a glimpse of Z-one's visible eye and noticed what could be considered a look of sadness. It seemed that the only time Z-one ever showed any sort of emotion was when he was visiting that statue.

"Excuse me, Lord Z-one." Paradox spoke.

The old cyborg turned to face Paradox. His visible eye had once again become cold "What is it?"

"Forgive the disturbance, my lord. But Seto Kaiba has been defeated." Paradox reported.

"It matters not." Z-one indifferently replied. "The power of that duel has gotten us much closer to our objective. It won't be much longer."

"How much more power is needed?" Paradox asked.

"Not much." Z-one answered. "Continue your efforts."

"Then I shall find one more assassin strong enough to push the Signers to their limits." Paradox declared. "And should that assassin fails, I shall handle the Signers personally!"

* * *

**Author's Note:** This chapter ended up being a tiny bit shorter than I had expected it to be. It seems like I miscalculated the length of the duel. Anyway, I hope this duel lived up to expectations. By the way, that comment Joey made in this chapter about Red Nova Dragon being as strong as the Egyptian God cards is something I feel to be quite accurate. I've actually used Red Nova a few times in actual duels, and as far as effects go it's at least an even match.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	12. The Third Brother

**Author's Note:** There's was a slight delay in writing this chapter. Mainly because I ended up spending a good chunk of the weekend making cover art for some of my older stories. That's right, I make my own cover art. I either just draw something by hand or just throw something together on the computer. Anyway, I hope everyone enjoys this next chapter. It has a development that I'm sure no one will see coming.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix.

* * *

Chapter 11: The Third Brother

Paradox searched through all of history to find another powerful duelist he could use as his next assassin. The next assassin would have to be the most powerful one yet if Z-one's plan was to succeed. Unfortunately, Paradox was not having any luck finding any other duelist who could come close to matching the power of the Signers. Then Paradox happened upon something that caught his curiosity. In an old historical record on the original Battle City Tournament, he noticed mention of the airship transporting the tournament participants to the site of the final rounds had been delayed. But there was no mention of what the delay was. Deciding that the incident was worth investigating, Paradox went back to the past to witness the incident with his own eyes.

The location between the old Domino City and the site of the Battle City finals took Paradox to a spot over the open ocean. The android duelist was forced to convert his white D-Wheel to flight mode in order to keep from plummeting into the water below. There, Paradox waited for the unknown delay. Then it happened. As soon as the Kaiba Corp airship entered the area, a large and surprisingly advanced underwater fortress emerged and forced the airship to land in its hanger.

Intrigued, Paradox used the computer in his D-Wheel to hack into the fortress' main computer to find out all he could about it. And what he found was far beyond what he had expected. The one controlling the fortress was a boy named Noah Kaiba, who Paradox found bore a remarkable resemblance to Seto Kaiba. Or at least he did in life. From what Paradox found out, Noah was nothing more than a human mind that was digitized and stored on a computer to prolong his mortal existence. His ultimate goal was to acquire a new body for himself so that he could escape his virtual prison, and to accomplish that goal Noah had decided to go after Yugi and his friends.

Paradox watched as Yugi and the others battled inside a virtual landscape against Noah's minions, a group of five business executives whose minds had also been digitized due to some previous encounter with Yugi and Kaiba. But they were nothing more than a group of pathetic old men, worthless to Paradox's purpose. In the end, it didn't matter anyway. As soon as all the members of the so-called "Big Five" had lost to Yugi and his friends, Noah had deleted them from existence. It was starting to seem to Paradox that he had come all that way for nothing. Then he saw Noah's duel with Kaiba, and the resulting duel with Yugi as well. Paradox had defeated Kaiba, and had nearly defeated Yugi. Truly, the boy was a powerful duelist. One that Paradox felt could be very useful.

As the situation advanced, the underwater fortress was put in jeopardy from a satellite missile strike from above. Paradox continued to watch, waiting for the right moment to act. That moment came when Noah tried to restrain the other mind that existed inside the fortress' computer, the mind of Noah's father Gozaburo Kaiba. With only moments to act, Paradox managed to separate Noah from Gozaburo and upload his consciousness onto a green data crystal. With a potential new assassin acquired, Z-one took off into the time stream seconds before the fortress exploded as the Kaiba Corp airship flew to safety. The rest was in Z-one's hands.

* * *

Misty and Sherry waited inside a large laboratory aboard the Arc Cradle with Z-one. Why they were waiting there, they didn't know. All they knew was that Paradox had some big news about another assassin he had found. After what seemed like half an hour of waiting, Paradox finally entered the room.

"So Paradox, where is this new powerful assassin that you've found?" Z-one asked.

"Right here, my lord." Paradox replied as he held up the green data crystal.

"So, your plan now is to throw a rock at one of the Signers?" Sherry asked with a raised eyebrow. "Well, I guess if you hit them with it while they're on their D-Wheels, it might cause them to crash."

"That is a data crystal, not a rock!" Z-one told her in a cold and irritated tone. "Still, for once Ms. LeBlanc has a point. How is a mere data crystal supposed to defeat the Signers?"

"This data crystal contains the mind of a powerful duelist." Paradox explained. "His name is Noah Kaiba."

"Wait, Kaiba as in Seto Kaiba?" Misty asked.

"Seto Kaiba was merely the adopted son of the original owner of the Kaiba Corporation, Gozaburo Kaiba." Paradox explained. "Noah Kaiba was Gozaburo's biological son. But an accident rendered Noah's body useless and forced Gozaburo to digitize Noah's mind and store it inside a virtual environment. Seto Kaiba was originally adopted for the sole purpose for providing Noah with a new physical body."

"I'm guessing that didn't work out, considering Noah is now that rock your holding." Sherry observed.

"In the end, Gozaburo gave up on Noah." Paradox confirmed. "But to make a long story short, Noah took matters into his own hands and attempted to acquire a body on his own. And in the process, he proved capable of defeating Seto Kaiba and almost defeating Yugi Muto."

"Impressive." Z-one remarked.

"But even if this Noah Kaiba is such a powerful duelist, he's still just a mind stored on a crystal." Misty pointed out.

"That is a problem I can easily solve." Z-one told them.

Suddenly the crystal floated out of Paradox's hand and went into a computer consol all the way across the room. All the machinery inside the lab began to hum to life.

"There is a slight problem with Noah Kaiba, my lord." Paradox revealed. "As powerful a duelist as he is, he is still very much a child."

"That too, is easily remedied." Z-one told him.

The large round machine in the center of the lab shot a column of white light up to the ceiling. The light cleared to reveal the ghostly holographic image of a green-haired boy who looked to be about ten.

"That's Noah?" Misty asked. "He's only a child."

Noah slowly opened his eyes and looked around. "What's going on? Where am I?"

"You are in the computer system of my fortress, the Arc Cradle." Z-one answered. "I am Z-one, the last human. And you, Noah Kaiba, have been given a second chance ay life."

"Who're you trying to kid?" Noah asked. "There is no second chance for me. When you're dead, that's it. I'm noting more than a ghost inside a machine. So just flip the switch and let me go."

"There's no need to be so pessimistic. Death is a simple matter for me to undo." Z-one revealed. "But for you to gain your second chance at life, you must first earn it. And to do that, you have a little growing up to do. I'm going to have you grow up by showing you the end of all things."

Suddenly the column of light reappeared in the center of the room and enveloped Noah. The entire lab echoed with a blood-curdling scream.

* * *

Aki and Tea waited together out in front of the mansion. It was turning out to be a very calm and peaceful day, so they decided to go out for lunch together with Carly and Raven. As they waited, the two of them talked about various things. Tea had done most of the talking, telling Aki about some of the adventures she had been on with Yugi and the others from her time. It was all very interesting for Aki to hear.

"Wow, that Dartz guy sounded pretty bad." Aki commented as Tea finished her latest tale. "Good thing Yugi was able to beat him. You sure have led an interesting life so far Tea."

"I bet your life has been pretty interesting too." Tea replied.

"That's an understatement." Aki chuckled. "For one thing I've had psychic powers since I was a kid."

Before Aki could continue, Carly pulled up in front of the mansion. She had dressed in her typical stripped shirt with a black leather jacket and grey jeans.

"Sorry I'm late." Carly greeted as she walked up.

"No problem." Aki assured her. "Tea was just telling me about some of the adventures she's been on with Yugi."

"What! And you were telling them without me?" a surprised and disappointed Carly asked. She then quickly pulled out a pad and pencil from her purse. "You have to tell me everything! Don't leave anything out!"

"Relax, I'd be happy to tell it all again." Tea assured her.

"Why don't we wait for Raven to get here first?" Aki suggested. "I'm sure she'd like to hear it too."

"Where is Raven, anyway?" Tea wondered.

"Oh, she called me a few minutes ago when I was on my way here." Carly revealed. "She said she'd be running late because she had to drop some things off at Martha's. I'm sure she'll be here soon though."

"Then we'll just wait here a little longer for her." Aki decided.

* * *

Raven drove along the bridge between Satellite and Neo Domino to Yusei's. She was running a little later than she thought she would. The kids at Martha's were always excited to see her and wanted her to play with them. And of course Raven just couldn't say no. She had ended up spending twenty minutes there before finally managing to escape.

Just as Raven made it past the halfway point of the bridge, a flash of pink light suddenly appeared on the road. The light faded to reveal a rider on a gold and white D-Wheel with large gold fins towards the back styled like feathered wings. The rider was a young man in his late teens dressed completely in white. Because he wasn't wearing a helmet, Raven could see his long green hair that stopped just above his shoulders.

Raven was surprised when she got a good look at the young man's face. "Kaiba?"

"I really do look a great deal like my dear foster brother, don't I?" the young man chuckled. "It's even more apparent in this new body of mine. I was a bit surprised myself when I first saw my reflection in the mirror. The resemblance between us is uncanny."

"Who are you?" Raven demanded to know.

"My name is Noah Kaiba." The young man greeted. "And by Lord Z-one's will, I have some to deliver judgment upon you, Signer."

"So you want to duel, huh?" Raven quickly deduced. "Fine! Let's get this over with!"

Raven and Noah took off down the road. With the announcement of the duel, the highway system redirected them onto the nearest duel lane. Raven easily made it onto the track first. It seemed like Noah wasn't even trying to beat her. Once Noah made it onto the track, the duel began.

"Track Field, activate!" Raven called out. "Dragon Ravine!"

The area around the track instantly and completely transformed around them. Instead of a bridge, Raven and Noah were driving through a tall desert canyon made of red rock.

"You know in a Turbo Duel, the person who makes it onto the track first gets the first turn." Raven explained to Noah.

"Oh I know all about the rules of a Turbo Duel." Noah confidently assured her. "I simply let you have the first turn to give you a slight advantage over me. Not that it will help you much though. In the end, you shall still fall before me."

"Yeah, you're Kaiba's brother alright." Raven sighed as she drew her first card. "I discard one card to activate one of Dragon Ravine's effects and send Dragunity Phalanx to the Graveyard! Next I summon Dragunity Dux in Attack Mode!"

Flying down onto the track next to Raven was a man in dressed in a brown and white costume that made him look like a bird. He had on a headdress that resembled the head of a falcon, and on his back was a pair of large dark-brown and white wings.

"When Dux is summoned, I can equip him with a level three or lower Dragunity Dragon from my Graveyard!" Raven announced. "So I now equip him with Dragunity Phalanx!"

Flying down onto the track was a squat blue dragon with large muscular arms and a large head. It had gold armor covering its tail, torso and forearms. On its face the dragon wore a gold mask with a pair of spear-like horns built into it. Dux flew up and landed on the dragon's back.

"I activate Phalanx's effect! Since he was equipped to a Dragunity monster, I can summon him to the field as a monster!" Raven announced. Dux hopped off Phalanx's back. "I set one card on the field and end my turn!"

"Leaving those weak monster of yours in Attack Mode. Clearly you're trying to lure me into some feeble trap." Noah deduced as he drew his next card. "But I may as well play along. No trap you can set can stop me."

"You think you know everything, huh?" Raven observed.

"I don't know how well you know my brother Seto, but I am superior to him in every way." Noah declared. "Not only is my intellect far greater, the body that Lord Z-one granted me is far greater than that of a mere human. To put it simply, I am a superior being."

"Just make your move already!" Raven told him.

"Very well." Noah complied. "For my first move I play the Ritual Spell, Shinato's Arc!"

Suddenly appearing on the track behind Noah was a large wooden boat. On the top of the boat in place of a sail and mast was a tall stone with square shapes engraved in it.

"From my hand I tribute the level eight Spirit monster, Hino-Kagu-Tsuchi to summon the ultimate divine being!" Noah announced. "Appear now, Shinato, King of a Higher Plane!"

A ball of gold light came down from the sky and entered the stone mast of the arc. The front of the arc opened up to reveal a swirling vortex of light inside. A large ball of gold light shot out of the vortex, causing the arc to vanish. The light formed into a large angelic figure with six large gold-feathered wings. The figure itself looked like the living statue of a Japanese deity.

"I now summon the Tuner monster, Herald of Enlightenment!" Noah announced.

Appearing on the track was a small golden android-like figure clad in white robes. It had a mask-like face lacking any sort of nose and mouth, and on its back was a pair of gold-feathered wings.

"I tune the level two Herald of Enlightenment with the level eight Shinato for a level ten Synchro Summon!" Noah announced.

The mechanical angel flashed white and changed into two rings made out of golden light. The rings enlarged to encircle Shinato and changed the angelic being into eight white stars.

"The stars and planets shall now realign! Reveal to us the path to enlightenment!" Noah chanted. "Synchro Summon! Descend from your heavenly plane, Shinato, Ruler of Enlightenment!"

The lights flashed and became a blinding column of golden energy that shot into the sky. In moment the light finally faded to reveal Shinato in a new form. His body had become gold and resembled that of an android. He had on a simple golden mask with only a pair of eyeholes. The angelic being was clad in a sleeveless white robe that went down to his feet, and on his back were eight golden blade-like wings.

"Because I used Herald of Enlightenment for a Synchro Summon, I gain 1000 life points." Noah announced as his life points went up to 5000. "Shinato, obliterate Dragunity Phalanx!"

"I activate my Trap, Urgent Tuning!" Raven quickly announced. "Using this card, I tune the level two Phalanx into the level four Dux for a level six Synchro Summon!"

Phalanx flashed orange and changed into two rings made of green light. The rings encircled Dux and changed the bird knight into four white stars.

"Blustering winds gather together now! Become the storm that pierces through darkness!" Raven chanted. "Synchro Summon! Descend, Dragunity Knight-Gae Bulg!"

The lights flashed and became a horizontal column of white energy. The light soon faded to reveal a large blue serpentine dragon clad in silver armor. Riding the dragon's back was a bird-like knight clad in similar armor.

"That was actually a fairly impressive display." Noah admitted. "But I'm afraid your dragon knight only has 2000 ATK. Compared to Shinato's 3800 ATK, it's nothing more than an insect."

"We'll see about that." Raven told him. "If you think your so-called Ruler of Enlightenment can bead Gae Bulg, go ahead and attack."

"Very well." Noah agreed. "Shinato, annihilate that pathetic dragon knight! Divine Punishment!"

Shinato brought his hands up and created a ball of golden energy between them. Steadily the ball began to grow in size.

"I activate Gae Bulg's effect!" Raven announced. "By banishing Dux from my Graveyard, Gae Bulg gains Shinato's ATK during this battle!"

"I think not!" Noah told her.

Suddenly a beam of golden light shot up from Shinato's back and came down to strike Gae Bulg. Upon being hit, the dragon and rider suddenly turned grey. Shinato finished charging the energy sphere between his hands and fired massive beam of golden energy down at Gae Bulg. The dragon knight was vaporized in an instant and Raven's life points fell to 2200.

"What the…? What happened?" a shocked Raven wondered.

"I simply activated one of Shinato's effects." Noah explained. "When Shinato does battle with another monster, I can negate that monster's effects during that battle. And on that note, another one of Shinato's effects activates. I gain life points equal to the destroyed monster's ATK, and you take damage equal to that monster's DEF!"

Specks of golden light showered down on Noah and raised his life points to 7000. At the same time, Shinato aimed his index finger down and Raven and fired a bolt of gold lightning. Raven cried out as the bolt struck her. Her life points dropped down to 1100.

"There is no way you can triumph over me." Noah smugly declared. "Lord Z-one has elevated me to whole new plane of existence, making me far superior to a mere mortal like you."

"…And I thought Jack and Kaiba had big egos." Raven responded after recovering from Shinato's attack. "But you… you're the most arrogant person I've ever met. Which is going to make it even more satisfying when I take you down!"

* * *

**Author's Note:** Admittedly I took a bit of a leap in this part of the story. Back during the planning stages, I wanted one of our heroes to face off against one major villain from either the original series or GX. But the problem there was that all the major villains were far too powerful to be brainwashed by Paradox, and there was no way they'd help Paradox and Z-one willingly. Plus sending them into the future would run the risk of screwing up the timeline.

The only villain that didn't really apply to was Noah, the arch villain of the original saga's Virtual World filler arc. At first I dismissed Noah because he was pretty much just a mind stuck inside a computer. But as I thought about it more, I realized that it was at least possible for Paradox to go back in time and retrieve Noah from the virtual world before the computer running it blew up. And since Z-one had brought back Paradox, Aporia, and Antinomy (Bruno) as androids, it'd be a simple matter for him to construct a new body for Noah. So in the end I ran with the idea. And it's let me do some fun things with Noah's character.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	13. Not So Enlightened

**Author's Note:** In the last review, the question of what was going to be done with Alexis is asked. Alexis will be playing the same roll that Misty and Sherry will be playing a little later in this story. That's all I'll say for now.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix.

* * *

Chapter 12: Not So Enlightened

As Aki, Carly, and Tea had waited for Raven, Bruno had informed them and Yusei that he had detected another temporal distortion, which meant that Paradox's latest assassin had arrived. Immediately Yusei and the others at the Fudo mansion headed out to the site. Carly had contacted Jack, who had soon joined them on the way. Yusei meanwhile had contacted Crow, Kiryu, and Sect, who moved out as quickly as they could. It was clear that whoever the assassin was, he or she was after Raven.

"We're getting close guys." Bruno informed them. "I've detected Raven's D-Wheel, and she's currently dueling an unknown opponent."

"I want to remember one thing, Fudo!" Kaiba told Yusei. "I'll help you save your friend if I can, but Paradox is mine! He needs to pay for what he's done to me!"

"Kaiba, we have more important things to worry about than your grudge!" Yugi told him.

"Yeah. Besides, I want a piece of that Paradox jerk too!" Joey cut in.

"And I still need to save Alexis!" Jaden reminded everyone.

"I don't care about your reasons!" Kaiba told them. "Paradox humiliated me! But if you like, I'll leave you his remains."

"Kaiba, Paradox will pay for what he's done." Yusei assured him. "But we need to work together."

"Besides Kaiba, I doubt that even an old relic like you could stand against Paradox." Jack remarked.

"Shut up, you no-name wannabe!" Kaiba shot back.

"Calm down you two." Yusei told them. "We're almost there. Let's just focus on trying to help Raven."

* * *

"I'll end my turn here." Noah announced. "You have just one turn left before I destroy you."

"You really are overconfident, you know that?" Raven told him as she drew her next card. "I activate another effect of Dragon Ravine and discard one card to add another copy of Dragunity Dux to my hand."

"So you're really going to use that same weak combo again?" Noah observed. "This is your last turn, you know. You should at least try to be more original."

"I summon Dragunity Dux in Attack Mode!" Raven announced, ignoring Noah's comment. The bird warrior flew down onto the track. "Next I activate Dux's effect and equip him with Phalanx from the Graveyard! Then I summon Phalanx to the field as a monster using his effect!"

The blue muscular dragon reappeared on the track and was mounted by Dux. But in the next instant, Dux jumped off of Phalanx's back.

"I tune the level two Phalanx into the level four Dux to summon a level six Synchro monster in Defense Mode!" Raven announced.

Phalanx flashed orange and changed into a pair of rings made out of green light. The rings encircled Dux and transformed the bird warrior into four white stars.

"Blustering wings gather now as one! Become the storm to shake the earth!" Raven chanted. "Synchro Summon! Descend, Dragunity Knight-Gae Dearag!"

The lights flashed into a single horizontal column of light. The light faded to reveal a dark-blue dragon with an elongated body and two pairs of wings. The dragon had red armor on his face, wrists, lower torso, and tail. Riding its back was bird-like warrior wearing similar armor.

"Another fairly impressive monster I suppose." Noah commented. "But summoning it was completely pointless."

"I set one card on the field and end my turn." Raven announced.

Before Noah could draw his next card, Yusei and the others arrived on the track. The group drove up closer to get a better look at what was going on. And they were all surprised to see the face of Raven's opponent.

"What the… two Kaibas?" a shocked Leo observed.

"Why does he have green hair?" Luna wondered.

"Well, it looks like we've gained an audience." Noah observed.

"Who the hell are you?" Kaiba demanded to know.

"Why Seto, I'm hurt." Noah sarcastically replied. "Granted, I've gone through a few changes. But surely I thought that you of all people would be able to recognize his own brother."

"Wait a minute, green hair…" Mokuba recalled. "Is that you Noah?"

"Noah?" a stunned Tea repeated. "But how can that be?"

"What's going on?" Yusei asked. "Yugi, do you and your friends know this guy?"

"I don't know how, but this man dueling Raven appears to be Kaiba and Mokuba's foster brother, Noah." Yugi explained.

"Wait a minute. Tea, you told me this story while we were waiting for Raven." Aki recalled. "But I thought you said he died."

"Yeah, years ago Noah was killed in an accident and his father downloaded his mind onto a computer." Tea explained. "But that computer was destroyed."

"That's right." Kaiba confirmed. "We all saw that fortress of Noah's get destroyed! There's no way this imposture could be him!"

"I wouldn't be too sure about that." Bruno interrupted. "With the technology at Paradox's disposal, it's possible that he went back in time and managed to download Noah's consciousness from this computer you've spoken of before it was destroyed. After that, all Z-one would have to do is build an android body for Noah."

"So… Noah's an android now?" Mokuba asked.

"Impossible! Even if what that mechanic is saying is true, the Noah I met was nothing more than a spoiled brat!" Kaiba argued.

"I've been through quite a few changes since we last met, dear brother." Noah revealed. "Before Lord Z-one gave me this new body, he had me experience the end of the world. I lived through the invasion of robots that killed off much of the human race. I grew up and learned how to survive that hell, only to experience death myself. After that, I was given this body and elevated into the superior being that I am now."

"Wait, he lived through the Meklord invasion?" Yusei asked. "How's that possible?"

"Z-one probably put Noah through a virtual simulation of the invasion." Bruno deduced. "One that was probably extremely real."

"Lord Z-one has not only given me new life, but a higher purpose." Noah went on. "I will prevent that wretched future from happening by helping him destroy this city!"

"Are you done?" Raven interrupted. "Look, I get that you've lived a pretty rough life, but that doesn't give you or Z-one the right to destroy innocent lives!"

"You know nothing, little bird!" Noah told her as he drew his next card. "And with this next move I'm going to clip your wings! I'll start by playing two copies of the Continuous Spell, Spring of Rebirth! Then I summon the Sprit monster, Inaba White Rabbit!"

Appearing on the track was a ghostly white rabbit holding onto an odd machine that vaguely resembled a mixing churn. On top of the rod of the device were three rocket boosters.

"Oh no! Not that monster!" Yugi exclaimed.

"Inaba, attack Raven directly!" Noah commanded.

The rabbit and its strange machine took off and struck Raven in the back. Raven cried out as the strike reduced her life points to 400.

"And now for the finishing blow." Noah grinned. "Shinato, obliterate that pathetic dragon knight! Divine Punishment!"

Shinato charged up and fired another blast of golden energy down at Gae Dearg. The dragon knight was instantly vaporized by the attack.

"You know what happens next." Noah reminded Raven as specks of golden light showered down on him from above. "Shinato's effect increases my life points by your dragon knight's ATK, and deals damage equal to its DEF. Which means you lose!"

Shinato took aim and fired another bolt of golden lightning from his index finger. But before the lightning could hit, a large slender black dragon with red eyes appeared in front of Raven. The black dragon was struck and was vaporized.

"What! Where did that dragon come from?" Noah demanded to know. "What did you do?"

"I activate my Trap, Dragon's Courage." Raven explained. "This card let me send my Red-Eyes Black Dragon from my deck to the Graveyard to reduce the damage from Shinato's effect to zero."

"Fine then! I end my turn." An irritated Noah announced. "And because it's the end of my turn, Inaba White Rabbit returns to my hand. Not only that, but because Inaba's returning to my hand, both copies of Spring or Rebirth increase my life points by 1000."

The rabbit spirit turned into a ball of golden light and flew into Noah's hand. Soon after, sparkling raindrops came down from above and increased Noah's life points to 10400.

"You may have bought yourself one more turn, but no matter what you do, it's useless." Noah smugly declared. "There's no way you can defeat a superior being like me."

"Will you get over yourself already!" Raven told him. "Look Noah, you may be an android and you seem pretty smart. And I do feel bad about all you've gone through. But you're no better than anyone else!"

"Have you been paying attention to this duel? You only have a handful of life points." Noah pointed out. "Meanwhile I have life points to spare plus an all-powerful monster. You can't win."

"We'll see about that!" Raven argued as she drew her next card. "First I summon Dragunity Legionnaire in Attack Mode!"

Flying down onto the track was a muscular warrior with green-feathered wings clad in white and gold. The warrior wore a headdress that resembled a green bird of prey.

"With Legionnaire's effect, I equip him with Dragunity Phalanx from the Graveyard!" Raven announced. Phalanx reappeared on the track and momentarily became Legionnaire's mount. "Next sacrifice Phalanx to Special Summon Dragunity Arma Mystletainn!"

Phalanx shattered to bits and was replaced by a larger yellow bipedal dragon with two pairs of wings. The lower pair of wings was smaller and had feathers like the wings of a bird. In his right hand, the dragon wielded an ornate sword with a long black and grey blade.

"When Mystletainn is Special Summoned, I can equip him with a Dragunity Dragon from my Graveyard. And the monster I equip him with is Dragunity Phalanx!" Raven announced. "And since Phalanx was equipped to a monster, I can use his effect to summon him to the field!"

A ball of blue light entered Mystletainn's sword. With one swing his blade the yellow dragon shot the same ball of light back out to have it take the form of Phalanx.

"I tune the level two Phalanx into the level three Legionnaire and the level six Mystletainn for a level eleven Synchro Summon!" Raven announced.

Phalanx flashed orange and changed into two rings of green light. The rings encircled the other two dragons and transformed them into nine white stars.

"Stars of destiny gather now as one! Come together to bring forth the guardian of the heavens!" Raven chanted. "Synchro Summon! Blaze to life, Celestial Dragon!"

The lights flashed and ignited into a single ball of fire. The ball shot up high into the air and quickly expanded into a massive star. A massive pair of red and black wings burst out of the sides of the star, and from the front emerged the head and long neck of a red dragon with four yellow eyes.

"Wow! I've never seen such a huge dragon!" Joey declared.

"Is this Raven's strongest monster?" Jesse asked.

"No. But I have a feeling that it's going to show up soon." Aki told him.

"Now that is an impressive monster." Noah admitted. "But as large as it is, it only has 3200 ATK. My Shinato is still far superior."

"I'm not done yet." Raven continued. "I activate a Spell card, Star Ritual Preparation! Since I have a Dragon on the field, Star Ritual Preparation lets me add two certain cards to my hand. And now I activate one of those cards, Star Dragon Ritual!"

The large card Raven played on the track showed the inside of a temple with an alter between a pair of tall torches lit with red flames. High on the wall behind the alter was the glowing red seal of the Crimson Dragon.

"With this card, I banish Red-Eyes Black Chick from my Graveyard to summon the Ritual Tuner, Star Dragon Priestess!" Raven announced.

An infant version of the Red-Eyes Black Dragon appeared in front of the Spell card. A red flame shot out of the Crimson Dragon Seal on the Spell card and burned the young dragon to ashes. The flame remained and quickly cleared to reveal a young woman with long black hair and fair skin. She had on a backless white dress and a pair of gold bracelets. Atop her head she wore a large red headdress that resembled the head of the Crimson Dragon, and painted onto her cheeks was a pair of red vertical lines.

"When Star Dragon Priestess is summoned, I can seal the effects of an opponent's monster until the end of the turn!" Raven announced. "And of course the monster I choose is Shinato, Ruler of Enlightenment!"

Star Dragon Priestess raised her arms forward and shot a ball of crimson energy up at Shinato. The mechanical angel was struck in the chest and the seal of the Crimson Dragon appeared. Shinato began to crackle with red electricity and the golden aura around him faded.

"This duel ends now!" Raven declared as her eyes began to glow red. The seal of the Crimson Dragon on her back blazed to life and the marks of the Signers that were present began to glow. "I tune the level one Star Dragon Priestess into the level eleven Celestial Dragon for a level twelve Synchro Summon!"

The priestess closed her eyes and raised her arms forward before bringing her hands together. Dragon Star Priestess then changed into a ring of crimson fire and shot up high into the air. The ring expanded to encircle Celestial Dragon and began to rotate around it.

"Stars of destiny align now and burn as one! Ignite the path that will bring forth the heavenly dragon!" Raven chanted. "Primal Synchro! The avatar of light, Golden-Eyes Crimson Dragon!"

The ring around Celestial Dragon shrank and caused it to explode into a super nova. The sky above changed to night and was covered by thousands of shining stars. The flames that were once the Celestial Dragon came down and formed into a new dragon. The new dragon was nowhere near as big as Celestial Dragon but was still quite large. Its body was covered in red scales and had two massive wings on its back. Its head had two horns and a pair of golden eyes. Glowing around a blue gemstone in the center of dragon's chest was a gold mark in the form of the Crimson Dragon's heart.

"When Golden-Eyes is summoned to the field, I can summon four other dragons from my Graveyard!" Raven announced. "Appear now, Dragunity Knight-Gae Bulg, Dragunity Knight-Gae Dearg, Dragunity Arma Mystletainn, and Red-Eyes Black Dragon!"

Golden-Eyes let out a powerful roar that echoed throughout the entire canyon. Four golden stars came down from the sky and took the form of each dragon Raven had named.

"What power!" an awestruck Kaiba declared.

"Wow! Raven just summoned five powerhouse monsters in one move!" an impressed Joey observed.

"Yes. And I have the feeling that Raven summoned Gae Dearg earlier just so Noah would send it to the Graveyard." Yugi deduced.

"Besides Shinato, Noah only has those two Spring of Rebirth cards on the field." Jaden noticed. "And the only card in his hand is that rabbit monster he attacked Raven with during the last turn. I don't think there's any way he can stop Raven's attack."

"How pathetic." Jack remarked. "And he calls himself a superior being."

"There's one other thing I should mention Noah." Raven continued. "Golden-Eyes gains 400 extra ATK for every other dragon on the field. Which means right now his ATK is 6500!"

"Impossible!" Noah denied. "I can't lose to the likes of you! There's no way!"

"Golden-Eyes Crimson Dragon, destroy Shinato!" Raven commanded. "Celestial Burst Stream!"

Golden-Eyes roared as he reared back his head and fired a blast of golden lightning at Shinato. The mechanical angel exploded upon being hit. Noah's life points dropped down to 7700.

"And now Red-Eyes, Mystletainn, Gea Dearg, and Gea Bulg, bring this duel to an end!" ordered. "Attack Noah directly!"

Mystletainn flew forward and slashed Noah with his sword, dropping his life points to 5600. Red-Eyes reared back his head and blasted Noah with a red fireball that took his life points down to 3200. The dragon knights finished things by blasting the green-haired duelist with two streams of flame that reduced what remained of his life points to zero. With the duel at an end, Raven's five dragons disappeared and the area around the track changed back to the way it was. Everyone's D-Wheel came to a complete a stop. Noah was still conscious but wore an expression of shock and disbelief.

At that moment, Crow drove up from the opposite end of the track with Kiryu and Sect. "Okay, where's the bastard who's after my wife?"

"Relax Crow, I won." Raven assured him.

"Oh…" Crow replied. "Hey, I wasn't worried. I knew you'd be able to beat any of Paradox's assassins."

"Uh-huh." Raven smirked.

Meanwhile, Mokuba ran up to Noah with Kaiba walking behind. "Hey, you okay Noah?"

"Huh?" Noah responded upon noticing Mokuba. "Yeah, I guess so."

"After seeing that duel of yours, I'm now convinced that you really are Noah." Kaiba admitted. "And that's because you're clearly still a spoiled brat! That pathetic display of a duel proves that you're unworthy of the name Kaiba!"

"Kaiba, I'm going to say something I've been wanting to say to you for awhile now." Raven interrupted as she walked up. "Shut up!"

Kaiba glared down at the raven-haired duelist, but softened after a moment. "With the power you've just shown, you've earned my respect as a duelist. So I'll let what you've just said slid this time. But don't ever speak to me like that again!"

"Whatever." Raven replied with a roll of her eyes. "Now let me speak to Noah."

"Do whatever you like with that weakling." Kaiba replied as he began to walk back to his D-Wheel.

Raven came forward and stood before Noah, causing him to look. "So, have you come to gloat?"

"No, I came to ask you to join us." Raven offered. "You've been given a second chance at life Noah. You shouldn't blow it by trying to destroy this city. Help us instead."

"There's no other choice. Neo Domino has to be wiped off the face of the earth." Noah told her. "I've lived through the hellish future that this city's existence has caused, and I will not allow it to happen!"

"Noah!" Yusei interrupted. "We don't want that future to happen either, but there's another way to stop it instead of destroying this city. And whatever that way is, we will find it!"

Noah looked at Yusei for a moment and began to chuckle. "You know… for some reason you remind me of Lord Z-one. Maybe it's those eyes of yours."

"Yeah, I've gotten that before." Yusei admitted a little uncomfortably. "But I mean what I say. We'll find another way to save the future. And I'm sure we'd find it a lot quicker with your help."

"…Fine, I may as well help you peons." Noah finally agreed. "I'm sure Lord Z-one wouldn't want me back anyway after such a colossal failure."

"How right you are, Noah." A familiar voice interrupted. Everyone looked to see that Paradox had arrived. "You have indeed outlived your usefulness. But do not worry, Lord Z-one has allowed me to let you live."

"So what do you want now, Paradox?" Yusei demanded to know. "Are you going to send another assassin after us?"

"I'm through playing games, Yusei." Paradox answered. "This time I've come to handle things myself."

"I was hoping you'd say that, Paradox!" Kaiba interrupted. "I'm going to make you pay for using me like a puppet!"

"You may duel me at later time if you wish, Kaiba." Paradox told him. "But right now my target is Yusei."

"Fine by me." Yusei agreed.

"Paradox, if you're going to duel Yusei, then I'll be dueling alongside him!" Bruno declared.

"Bruno." A somewhat touched Yusei replied.

"You would duel at Yusei's side Antinomy?" a surprised and enraged Paradox replied. "Is there no limit to your betrayal?"

"The only reason I'm going against you and Z-one is because I have hope in Yusei." Bruno told him. "I'm sure Yusei will find a better way to keep our future from happening."

"I see. You're memory hasn't been fully restored." Paradox chuckled. "If it was, I doubt you would be taking this position. But no matter! If you both with to duel me, that's fine! In one move I shall eliminate the leader of the Signers and a traitor!"

"Bring it on!" Yusei dared.

* * *

**Author's Note:** When the actual Celestial Dragon card was released in the US, its name was changed to Star Eater. I'm not going to change it in this trilogy though. The main reason is because I think Celestial Dragon is a far more appropriate name. Anyway, I had some slight difficulties writing the duel in these last two chapters. Part of the problem was that I've never used Noah's Spirit monsters myself before, and had never had the desire to. I think that was one of the reasons this duel ended up being fairly short. I also feel like I could've done this duel better because it began and ended the same way Raven's duel with Jose in _Stardust and Roses_ did. Oddly enough, both of Raven's opponents in this trilogy, Jose and Noah, have used strategies that increased their life points to almost insane amounts.

Anyway, I'd like to let everyone know that I probably won't be updating this story as frequently as I have been this month. Don't worry, there's no major crisis going on in my life. I just feel like I need to slow down a bit with this story, sort of pace myself. Plus since it's October, I'd like to spend a little time on this horror story I've been planing. I plan to have the next chapter of this story up by next week, so stay tuned.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	14. Bond of Hope

**Author's Note:** Sorry for not getting this chapter up sooner. I was going to have it done last week, but I had gotten a lot further along on the other story I was working on than I thought I would be. So I decided to go ahead and wrap that up first since there wasn't much left to do on it. Anyway, I apologize again for the delay. But better late than never, right?

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix

* * *

Chapter 13: Bond of Hope

"We'll be using tag duel rules for this match." Paradox informed Yusei and Bruno as they prepared to take off. "You'd better hope that Antinomy doesn't hold you back, Yusei."

"You just worry about yourself!" Yusei told him.

With that, the three duelists took off down the track at full speed. The rest of the Signers and their allies followed them from close behind to watch. Just as the three reached the first curve, Paradox's D-Wheel suddenly transformed into its flight mode and lifted into the air. The added thrust from takeoff allowed Paradox to take the corner first.

"What the…?" Joey exclaimed. "That thing can fly? That cheat!"

"Since I have the honor of first turn, I shall let you have the first attack, Yusei." Paradox decided. "Now then, I activate the Track Field, Malefic World!"

The entire area of the track became covered in a sparkling purple mist. The colors of the sky, the bridge and all the water around it became inverted as if they had all entered an alternate dimension.

"For my first move I banish Stardust Dragon from my Extra Deck to summon Malefic Stardust Dragon!" Paradox announced.

Stardust Dragon materialized on the track to fly alongside Paradox. But the silvery-white dragon's appearance was different. It had on a black mask that covered its eyes, as well as black armor on its knees, the front of its torso, and its left shoulder. Its wings had become black and white blades.

"Impossible! How can he have Stardust Dragon?" a stunned Aki wondered.

"What's the big deal? So he has the same card as Yusei." Joey shrugged.

"Only one copy of Stardust Dragon is supposed to exist." Raven explained. "It's the same as the rest of the Signer Dragons. Paradox shouldn't have another copy."

"I see. So they're as rare as my Blue-Eyes White Dragon." Kaiba observed.

"There are three copies of that dragon of yours. There's only one copy of each of our dragons." Jack corrected. "Which makes my Red Dragon Archfiend rarer than that shiny gecko of yours."

"Take back what you said about my card!" Kaiba demanded.

"How the hell do you have that card, Paradox?" Yusei demanded to know.

"You mean the Stardust Dragon card I used to summon my Malefic monster? That card actually belongs to Lord Z-one." Paradox revealed. "He leant it to me for this duel."

"Yusei! Forget about it for now!" Bruno interrupted. "We both need to remain calm and focused if we're going to beat Paradox."

Yusei took a deep breath. "Yeah, okay."

"Well then, I'll just set one card on the field and end my turn." Paradox announced. "Your move, Antinomy."

Bruno drew his first card. "I summon Tech Genus Catapult Dragon in Attack!"

Appearing on the track was a red and black four-legged dragon with a body built like that of an alligator. Its long snout resembled a sort of launching pad.

"Next I activate the Spell card, Double Summon and use it to summon Tech Genus Cyber Magician!" Bruno announced. A small Spellcaster clad almost completely in blue armor and robes appeared on the track. "Next I activate Catapult Dragon's effect and summon Tech Genus Jet Falcon!"

A portal of blue light appeared on the dragon's back, and from it flew out a black and blue cybernetic bird with jet boosters. On this bird's face it had a red growth resembling a mask.

"I tune the level three Jet Falcon into the level two Catapult Dragon for a level five Synchro Summon!" Bruno announced.

Jet Falcon squawked and flapped its wings as it changed into three rings made of green light. The rings encircled Catapult Dragon and transformed it into two white stars.

"Limit release, Level Five! Boosters level 120 percent! Recovery network range activated! All Clear!" Bruno chanted. "Go! Synchro Summon! Come on, Tech Genus Power Gladiator!"

The lights flashed and changed into a horizontal column of white light. Emerging from the light was an axe-wielding warrior with dark hair and tan skin wearing brown armor.

"Since I used Jet Falcon for a Synchro Summon, you take 500 points of damage!" Bruno announced.

A ghostly version of Jet Falcon appeared in the air and flew full speed at Paradox with its rocket boosters blazing. The cybernetic bird struck Paradox and created an explosion of smoke and fire. When the smoke cleared, Paradox was unharmed. Though his life points had dropped to 7500.

"Was that supposed to hurt?" Paradox scoffed.

"I'm not done yet!" Bruno continued. "Cyber Magician's effect allows me to use a monster from my hand as Synchro material! So I tune the level one Cyber Magician into the level four Tech Genus Rush Rhino from my hand for a level five Synchro Summon!"

Appearing on the track was a grey humanoid rhino with cybernetic components on its limbs. Cyber Magician changed into a single ring of green light and encircled Rush Rhino, changing him into four white stars.

"Limit release, Level Five! Booster launch, okay! In-creation, okay! Ground support, all clear!" Bruno chanted. "Go! Synchro Summon! Come on, Tech Genus Wonder Magician!"

The lights flashed and became a horizontal column of white light. Emerging from the light was a young-looking woman with long pink hair clad in armored reddish-brown robes with four white mechanical wings.

"I see what you're planning to do Antinomy." Paradox chuckled. "Go ahead and summon that monster if you wish. But it will do you no good!"

"I end my turn." Bruno announced. "Go for it, Yusei!"

Yusei nodded and drew his first card. "I summon Junk Blader in Attack Mode!"

Yusei's warrior clad completely in purple armor with a tattered black cape appeared on the track. In his hand he wielded a large sword.

"Next I discard Quillbolt Hedgehog to summon the Tuner monster, Jackie Jumper!" Yusei announced. The small robotic skier appeared on the track. "I tune the level three Jackie Jumper into the level four Junk Blader for a level seven Synchro Summon!"

Jackie Jumper flashed orange and changed into three green rings of light. The rings encircled Junk Blader and transformed him into four white stars.

"Clustering stars come together to signal the arrival of the ultimate swordsman! Create the path its light shines upon!" Yusei chanted. "Synchro Summon! Awaken, Seven Swords Warrior!"

The lights flashed and became a pillar of white energy. That energy faded to reveal a warrior clad in magnificent golden armor. He had a large panel of armor mounted on each shoulder, and in each hand he wielded a large sword. There was also another sword inside a sheath mounted on his back.

"I equip Seven Swords Warrior with Junk Barrage!" Yusei announced. "And once per turn when Seven Swords Warrior is equipped with a card, his effect lets me inflict 800 points of damage!"

The swordsman began to glow with a green aura as he clapped his hands together. From his hands shot a blade of golden light that struck Paradox in the chest. Paradox's life points dropped to 6700.

"Next I activate another of Seven Swords Warrior's effects!" Yusei announced. "By sending one of his equip cards to the Graveyard, I can destroy one monster on the field! And the monster I choose to destroy is Malefic Stardust Dragon!"

Seven Swords Warrior gathered the green aura around him into a ball of light between his hands. Once the ball had gotten big enough, the swordsman shot the ball at Malefic Stardust Dragon. The corrupted dragon exploded in a flash of fire and smoke.

"An impressive move. But I'm afraid it just backfired!" Paradox grinned. "I activate my Trap, Malefic Retribution! Since you destroyed on of my Malefic monster with a card effect, I can destroy your Seven Swords Warrior and inflict 800 points of damage!"

A pink bolt of lighting shot from Paradox's Trap card and struck Seven Swords Warrior. The golden swordsman shattered into bits of light and Yusei and Bruno's life points dropped to 7200.

"We're not done yet!" Bruno declared.

"Wonder Magician! Power Gladiator! Attack Paradox directly!" Yusei commanded.

Power Gladiator charged in and struck Paradox with his axe. Soon after, Wonder Magician shot the android duelist with a bolt of blue electrical energy. When the attacks had ended, Paradox's life points had dropped to 2500.

"Wow! Yusei and Bruno really did some damage!" an impressed Jaden observed.

"They do have the lead, but this duel may be far from over." Yugi assumed.

"You think Paradox has another trick up his sleeve?" Tea asked him.

"I get the feeling that we've yet to see Paradox's full power." Yugi confirmed.

"I set one card on the field and end my turn!" Yusei announced.

"I see. So you kept those two monsters on the field so Yusei could deal more damage, eh Antinomy?" Paradox observed.

"I still consider you a friend, Paradox." Bruno admitted. "But I'm going to do everything I can to help Yusei take you down!"

"You wouldn't be saying that if your memory was intact." Paradox told him. "If you only knew who Yusei really was, you'd still be on my side."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Yusei demanded to know.

"It doesn't matter either way. By the time this duel is over, you'll both be dead!" Paradox declared as he began his turn. "I banish the Blue-Eyes White Dragon from my deck to summon Malefic Blue-Eyes White Dragon!" The corrupted form of Blue-Eyes appeared to fly alongside Paradox.

"Now wait just a minute, Paradox!" Kaiba protested. "How the hell did you get your hands on my card?"

"I picked this copy of the Blue-Eyes from the ruins of my time." Paradox explained. "I didn't think anyone would mind me using it, as the rest of the world was more or less dead! Now then, for my next move I summon the Tuner monster, Malefic Parallel Gear!"

Appearing on the track by the Malefic Blue-Eyes was a small strange-looking machine with large black gears. As soon as Parallel Gear appeared, Bruno began to speed up on his D-Wheel.

"I tune the level two Malefic Parallel Gear into the level eight Malefic Blue-Eyes White Dragon for a level ten Synchro Summon!" Paradox announced.

Parallel Gear changed into two rings of purple light and encircled Malefic Blue-Eyes. The rings changed the corrupted dragon into eight crackling spheres of dark energy. All the while, Bruno continued to speed up.

"Limiter Removal Ten! Main Base Booster Control! All Clear!" Bruno began to chant as his speed continued to increase. "Infinite Power, unleashed here and now, break through this very dimension and beyond! Go! Accel Synchro!"

"Born from the threshold of the dimension of Darkness! Time to lower the curtain of destruction on the stage that surpasses time and space!" Paradox chanted. "Synchro Summon! Appear now, Malefic Paradox Dragon!"

The lights from Paradox's monster erupted into a massive pillar of dark energy. In the exact same instant, Bruno took off down the track in a streak of pinkish-red light. As he did, Wonder Magician changed into five green rings that encircled Power Gladiator. The pillar of dark energy subsided to reveal a large dragon with a long neck and massive wings. Its body was covered almost completely in black and white armor and spiked blonde hair grew from the back of its head. An instant later, Bruno reappeared from another stream of light that shot down from the other end of the track past the spectators. Flying alongside him was a green and orange humanoid robot carrying a black gun with an energy blade.

"Come on, Tech Genus Blade Blaster!" Bruno called out.

"Whoa! Two summons in the same turn!" an impressed Jesse observed. "I've never seen anything like that before."

"Too little, too late I'm afraid!" Paradox laughed. "Your Blade Blaster only has 3300 ATK, whereas my Malefic Paradox Dragon has 4000. There's no way you can stand against it!"

"We shall see, Paradox!" Bruno replied.

"That we will." Paradox agreed. "I activate Malefic Paradox Dragon's effect and revive Seven Swords Warrior from the Graveyard!"

The dark dragon brought the ends of its narrow wings together. Black electricity began to crackle between the tips and caused a black sphere to form. Yusei's golden swordsman emerged from the sphere to fly beside Paradox and his dragon.

"I attack Blade Blaster with Malefic Paradox Dragon!" Paradox announced. "Sin Paradox Stream!"

"I activate Blade Blaster's effect and remove it from the field until my next Standby Phase!" Bruno quickly announced.

Paradox dragon reared back its head and fired a stream of black energy at its mouth at Blade Blaster. But before the stream could hit, Blade Blaster vanished in a flash of orange light. The attack kept going and hit Bruno, almost knocking him off the road. When the attack ended, Yusei and Bruno's life points dropped down to 3200.

"You okay?" a concerned Yusei asked.

"Don't worry. I'm fine." Bruno assured him with a thumbs-up.

"Seven Swords Warrior, attack Yusei directly!" Paradox commanded. "Seven Swords Slash!"

Seven Swords Warrior charged forward and slashed Yusei with his blades. The attack dropped Yusei and Bruno's life points to 900.

"That was rather selfish of you Antinomy. Had you let Blade Blaster take the kit from Paradox Dragon, you would've minimized the damage from those attacks." Paradox pointed out.

"I saved Blade Blaster so Yusei could use it to defeat you!" Bruno told you.

"Are you sure about that?" Paradox asked. "Perhaps this is a subconscious attempt to sabotage Yusei so he'll lose and be destroyed. Think about it Antinomy, you may be missing a few memories, but you still know the truth deep down. Even now, you are still helping Lord Z-one's plans!"

"Paradox!" Yusei interrupted. "You couldn't be more wrong about Bruno. He has total faith in me and I have total faith in him! Our bond is going to take you down!"

"Really?' Paradox scoffed. "Then let's see the strength of this supposed bond you have."

"I activate my Trap, Shock Draw!" Yusei announced. "Because Bruno and I took at least six thousand points of damage this turn, this card lets me draw six cards!"

"Very well. I end my turn." Paradox announced.

Bruno drew his next card. As soon as he did, Blade Blaster reappeared on the track in another flash of orange light.

"So Antinomy, let's see you help Yusei defeat me." Paradox dared.

"There's nothing I can do this turn." Bruno announced. "I pass."

"What? He's passing this turn?" a shocked Joey exclaimed.

"As much as I hate to agree with that scum Paradox, it seems he might be right." Kaiba remarked. "You've all said yourselves that Bruno is from this ruined future of yours. What if he's really a sleeper agent programmed to destroy you when you least expected it?"

"Shut up Kaiba!" Crow responded. "You don't know Bruno like the rest of us do! He may be some android from the future like Paradox, but he's still our friend! He would never betray us!"

"But think about it you guys. Paradox has a point." Mokuba interjected. "Sure Bruno and Yusei would've lost a powerful monster if Bruno hadn't used Blade Blaster's effect. But they also would've taken a lot less damage."

"What if… what if Yusei wanted Bruno to banish Blade Blaster so they'd take all that damage?" Noah suddenly suggested. "If Bruno had let Blade Blaster get destroyed and block some of that damage, Yusei wouldn't have been able to draw as many cards with Shock Draw."

"Shut up Noah!" Kaiba told him. "We don't need to hear any of your theories!"

"You should listen to that brother of yours, Kaiba." Jack told him. "He's obviously smarter than you."

"What the hell did you just say?" Kaiba shot back.

"I know Yusei pretty well. And if he's planning what I think he is, that move of Bruno's was just what he needed." Jack assumed.

"Yusei! I leave it all up to you!" Bruno told him.

"Right!" Yusei nodded as he drew his next card. "I activate Monster Reborn and bring Junk Blader back to the Graveyard!" The armored warrior reappeared on the field. "Now I sacrifice Junk Blader to Special Summon Turret Warrior!"

Junk Blader shattered to bits. In his place appeared a massive warrior wearing armor made of stone brick. The head had a single slit for the warrior to see through, and on each shoulder it had a pair of small cannons.

"Now I summon the Tuner monster, Quick-Span Knight!" Yusei announced. The small wrench-headed robot appeared on the track. "Then I activate the Spell, Double Summon and Summon Mono Synchron!"

A small green and yellow robot appeared on the track alongside Yusei's other monsters. Both the robot's arms ended with a large red stamp of the number One.

"Since I have at least one Tuner on the field, I can summon Quillbolt Hedgehog from the Graveyard!" Yusei announced. Appearing on the track was a light brown hamster-like creature with a mass of grey screws on its back. "I now tune the level three Quick-Span Knight into the level five Turret Warrior for a level eight Synchro Summon!"

Quick-Span Knight flashed orange and changed into three green rings of light. The rings then encircled Turret Warrior and transformed it into five white stars.

"Clustering hopes will become a new shining star! Become the path its light shines upon!" Yusei chanted. "Synchro Summon! Take flight, Stardust Dragon!"

The light flashed and became a single pillar of white energy. In moments the energy died down and Stardust Dragon appeared. Quick-Span Knight's head then flew across the field and struck Malefic Paradox Dragon in the face.

"Since Quick-Span Knight was used for a Synchro Summon, his effect lowers your Malefic Paradox Dragon's ATK by 500 points!" Yusei announced.

"As if that will do you any good." Paradox scoffed.

"When Mono Synchro is used for a Synchro Summon, the levels of the other monsters used with it drop to level one!" Yusei continued. "So I tune the level one Mono Synchron into the now level one Quillbolt Hedgehog for a level two Synchro Summon!"

Mono Synchron fired a red beam of light from the stamp on its right arm that hit Quillbolt Hedgehog on the cheek. A large red number One appeared where the beam hit. Mono Synchron then changed into a single ring of light and encircled Quillbolt Hedgehog, transforming the rodent into a single star.

"Clustering wishes will call out a new speed's horizon! Become the path its light shines upon!" Yusei chanted. "Synchro Summon! The power of hope, Synchro Tuner, Formula Synchron!"

The lights flashed into a horizontal pillar of white energy. The energy faded to reveal a robotic racecar colored white, yellow, green, and red. The small head of the robot was contained in the cockpit and wore a blue racing helmet, and towards the end of the vehicle were blue arms and legs.

"Since I just summoned Formula Synchron, I can draw one card!" Yusei announced. "Now I tune the level two Formula Synchron into the level eight Stardust Dragon for a level ten Synchro Summon!"

Yusei began to increase the speed of his D-Wheel. As he sped up a stream of pinkish-red light began to form around him.

"Clustering crystal dreams open the door to a new evolution! Become the path its light shines upon!" Yusei began to chant. "Accel Synchro!"

Yusei took off down the track in a streak of light. As he did, Formula Synchron changed into two green rights of light and went around Stardust Dragon. Less than a second later, Yusei came up from the opposite end of the track from the same streak of light. Bursting out of the light with him was a larger and more muscular version of Stardust Dragon. Its head was sleeker with shorter horns, and it had four fin-like wings on its back.

"Be born, Shooting Star Dragon!" Yusei called out

"There it is! Yusei's strongest monster!" Aki identified.

"That dragon took a lot of cards to summon." Jaden observed. "Looks like Noah might've right about Yusei wanting to take that much damage."

"How useless!" Paradox scoffed. "Both your dragon and Blade Blaster only have 3300 ATK. Even with the attack reduction from Quick-Span Knight, my Malefic Paradox Dragon is still stronger."

"Not for long! I equip Shooting Star Dragon with Fighting Spirit!" Yusei announced. Shooting Star Dragon began to glow with a yellow aura. "Thanks to Fighting Spirit, Shooting Star Dragon gains 300 points for each monster on my opponent's field! And since you have two monsters, Shooting Star Dragon's ATK is now 3900!"

"Let's end this Yusei!" Bruno decided.

"Right! I activate Shooting Star Dragon's effect!" Yusei announced. "I pick up the top five cards on my deck, and for each Tuner monster I pick up, Shooting Star Dragon gets an attack!" He picked up five cards from his deck one at a time. "Two of the cards I picked up were Junk Changer and Junk Mail, both Tuners! Which means Shooting Star Dragon gets to attack twice!"

Shooting Star Dragon split into two dragons. One dragon glowed with a red light and the other glowed with a blue light.

"Two attacks won't be enough to finish me." Paradox pointed out.

"No, but Blade Blaster is still on the field." Bruno pointed out. "And that will be what finishes you!"

"Shooting Star Dragon, attack Paradox's monsters!" Yusei commanded. "Stardust Mirage!"

The two dragons took off at full speed towards Malefic Paradox Dragon and Seven Swords Warrior. The impacts of both attacks created huge explosions that covered Paradox in smoke. But before the smoke cleared, Paradox could be heard laughing. When the smoke finally cleared, a new and massive dragon had appeared. The dragon was gold in color and its wings and legs seemed somehow inverted. Even more surprising was that Paradox had somehow merged into the top of the dragon's head.

"W-What the…?" a stunned Yusei exclaimed.

"Because Malefic Paradox Dragon was destroyed, I was able to pay half my life points to summon Malefic Truth Dragon from my hand." Paradox explained. "A valiant effort Yusei, but this duel can only end with your demise!"

* * *

**Author's Note:** The ironic thing about this chapter is that Bruno really was sort of a sleeper agent in the actual anime. Anyway, the duel in this chapter turned out to be one of the more complicated duels that I've written. Mainly because I had to figure out how Yusei was going to summon Shooting Star Dragon in one turn. Bruno being involved sort of threw things off a little. I was going to end this chapter after Paradox's first attack with Malefic Paradox Dragon, but the point where he summoned Malefic Truth Dragon turned out to be a much better end point (plus it would've been too short a chapter).

Please review and let me know what you think.


	15. Arc Cradle

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix.

* * *

Chapter 14: Arc Cradle

"My Malefic Truth Dragon has 5000 ATK, which is far stronger than even your evolved Synchro monsters." Paradox gloated. "It seems that the power of your bond was not as strong as you thought."

"I set one card on the field and end my turn." Yusei announced.

"This duel ends now!" Paradox declared as he drew his next card. "Malefic Truth Dragon, obliterate Shooting Star Dragon! Sin Truth Stream!"

"I activate Shooting Star Dragon's effect!" Yusei quickly announced. "By removing him from the field until the end of the turn, Shooting Star Dragon negates your attack!"

Malefic Truth Dragon opened its mouth and fired a powerful stream of dark crackling energy. But before the attack could hit, Shooting Star Dragon vanished and created a pillar of light that stopped the blast cold.

Paradox began to laugh. "Nice try, but you won't be saving yourselves this time! From my hand I activate a Quick-Play Spell, Malefic Bloodlust! When the attack of a Malefic monster is negated, this card allows it to attack again! Now my Malefic Truth Dragon! Destroy Tech Genus Blade Blaster and end this duel!"

"I activate my Trap, Scrap-Iron Scarecrow!" Yusei announced.

Paradox's dragon fired another back blast at Blade Blaster. But before the attack could hit, Yusei's scarecrow of junk appeared in front of the robotic warrior and created an invisible barrier that stopped Malefic Truth Dragon's attack. When the attack ended, Yusei's Trap reset itself on the field.

"Amazing! Yusei was able to stop both of Paradox's attacks!" Tea commented.

"That's our Yusei!" Crow praised.

"You seem to have a nasty habit of surviving." Paradox scowled. "Very well! I end my turn." With the end of Paradox's turn, Shooting Star Dragon reappeared on the track.

Bruno drew his next card. "Yusei. I advice both you and Aki to watch this next move closely."

"What are you planning now Antinomy?" Paradox asked with a raised brow.

"I summon Tech Genus Drill Fish in Attack Mode!" Bruno announced. Appearing on the track was a large red fish with a golden drill-like horn on the front of its snout. "Next I Special Summon the Tuner monster, Tech Genus Gear Zombie!"

Appearing on the track was a humanoid zombie with very dark-grey skin. The undead creature had several black gears on its arms.

"I tune the level one Gear Zombie into the level one Drill Fish for a level two Synchro Summon!" Bruno announced.

Gear Zombie flashed orange and changed into a single ring of green light and encircled Drill Fish. The red cybernetic fish in turn became a single white star.

"Limiter Removal Level Two! Regulator open! Navigation, All Clear!" Bruno chanted. "Go! Synchro Summon! Come on, Tech Genus Recipro Dragonfly!"

The lights flashed and became a horizontal ray of energy. The energy faded to reveal a large red mechanical dragonfly with purple eyes. Its wings were purple as well and attached the midsection of its body like the blades of a propeller.

"I activate Recipro Dragonfly's effect!" Bruno announced. "By sending Blade Blaster to the Graveyard, I can summon Wonder Magician and Power Gladiator to the field!"

Recipro Dragonfly fired a beam of purple light from its eyes that hit Blade Blaster in the back. The robot warrior transformed into a large sphere of purple energy that split into two smaller spheres. In moments, the spheres changed into Wonder Magician and Power Gladiator.

"Why'd you do that?" Yusei asked Bruno with a raised eyebrow.

"Up to now Yusei, you and Aki have only scratched the surface of Accel Synchro." Bruno revealed. "The time has come for me to show you its full power! I now tune the level five Wonder Magician into the level five Power Gladiator and the level two Recipro Dragonfly for a level twelve Synchro Summon!"

Bruno began to drastically increase the speed of his D-Wheel. As he did, a stream of red light began to form around him.

"Limiter Removal Level MAX! Regulator open! All Clear! Infinite Power! Piercing through Time and Space, open to a World Unkown!" Bruno began to chant as his speed continued to increase. "Go! Delta Accel!"

Bruno and his three monsters shot down the track at an incredible speed, leaving only a trail of light in their wake. In less than a second, Bruno shot down from the other end of the track. And when he reached the end point his arrival created a blinding explosion of light that almost knocked Yusei and the spectators off the track. The light faded to reveal a new monster that was flying alongside Bruno. It was a large black humanoid robot with an orange chest and a pair of cannons on its back that pointed straight up. In its hands, the robot carried a long slender staff with a single blade on the end.

"Come on, Tech Genus Halberd Cannon!" Bruno called out.

"Incredible!" a stunned Yusei remarked.

"So that's… the next level of Accel Synchro?" Aki wondered to herself.

Paradox began to laugh. "I must admit Antinomy, you have impressed me greatly. Until now, only Lord Z-one has been capable of using Delta Accel. Unfortunately you are still one step behind me. As powerful as your Halberd Cannon is, it only has 4000 ATK. It's a shame that you couldn't summon that monster a turn sooner. If you had, you might've been able to defeat me. But the way things are now, you and Yusei don't stand a chance!"

"You may have a stronger monster, Paradox. But Yusei and I will still win!" Bruno declared. "That is because I have faith in Yusei's power! I end my turn and leave the rest to him!"

"You're both fools!" Paradox scoffed. "The only way this duel can end is with your defeat! Just as the only way to change future of this world is to destroy Neo Domino! It is destiny!"

"You're wrong Paradox!" Yusei denied. "Even if it is destiny, destiny can be overcome! And as long as I can still draw cards from my deck, there's still a way for us to win this duel!"

Suddenly the dragon mark on Yusei's arm lit up, as did the marks of the other Signers. The top card of Yusei's deck began to glow with a crimson light. Yusei drew the card from his deck. As soon as he drew it, the light from the card faded to reveal a monster card Yusei had never seen before, but he knew exactly what to do with it.

"I equip Shooting Star Dragon with the monster, Dragon Star Weapon-Unity Wing Carrier!" Yusei announced.

Flying down from the sky was a red spacecraft with long wings and a flat top. The front end of the craft resembled the head of a dragon with yellow eyes and a large jaw with protruding silver fangs. The craft bombarded Shooting Star Dragon with a red ray of light from its underside, causing the dragon to expand slightly. After that, the craft came down and attached itself to Shooting Star Dragon's back.

"So, you managed to call forth one of the Crimson Dragon's mechanical avatars." Paradox observed.

"I activate the effect of Unity Wing Carrier!" Yusei announced. "Until the end of this turn, I can add the ATK of one other Synchro monster on my side of the field to Shooting Star Dragon's! And the monster I choose for this effect is Halberd Cannon!"

Halberd Cannon jumped into the air and landed on the back of Unity Wing Carrier. Small clamps emerged from the craft to hold the robot's feet in place.

"Now Shooting Star Dragon's ATK is 7300!" Yusei announced. "That's way stronger than your Malefic Truth Dragon!"

"Impossible!" Paradox exclaimed.

"Shooting Star Dragon, attack Malefic Truth Dragon!" Yusei and Bruno commanded together. "Shooting Star Joust!"

Halberd Cannon pointed his staff forward and the cannons on his back rotated down to rest on his shoulders. Shooting Star Dragon took off like a rocket and crashed full speed into Malefic Truth Dragon, creating a blinding explosion of light. Paradox cried out as his remaining 400 life points dropped to zero. When the light finally faded, the monsters on the field had vanished and the area around the track had returned to normal. Paradox was on the ground. His lower half was gone, revealed the crackling electronic components inside his body. The cards from his deck were scattered on the ground around him.

Yusei and Bruno pulled up and dismounted their D-Wheels. As the two approached, Paradox lifted his head slightly to look at them.

"So… you managed to win… after all." Paradox observed.

"It's over, Paradox." Yusei told him. "Z-one's plan has failed."

"I may have lost. But things are far… from over." Paradox smiled.

Suddenly Paradox's copy of Stardust Dragon glowed with a pink light and shot into the sky, quickly fading from view. Less than a second later there was an explosion of pink light in the sky, fading after a moment to be replaced by dark-grey clouds. Suddenly emerging from those clouds was a large floating grey structure shaped like a top. A single ridge coiled around the underside like a spiral.

"What the hell is that?" Joey asked.

"It… can't be!" a horrified Bruno exclaimed.

"Bruno, what is it?" Yusei asked.

"It's… Z-one's fortress." Bruno explained. "The Arc Cradle."

"You shortsighted fools." Paradox laughed weakly. "Did you really think… the only purpose of my assassins… was to kill you? I was merely… finishing what… Aporia started."

"What do you mean?" Yusei demanded to know.

"Aporia's three embodiments came to this time… to collect Momentum energy for… the Arc Cradle to come to this time." Paradox explained. "That was the purpose of the duels… in the Pit. I collected the energy that was still needed… by arranging duels between the Signers… and the most powerful duelists in history. Our duel… was merely the catalyst… needed for the Arc Cradle to come."

"So all this time you weren't really trying to kill us?" an outranged Crow asked.

"Of course I was… you fool." Paradox chuckled. "But… your deaths… were a relatively low priority. Now that the Arc Cradle… or rather now that Lord Z-one… has come, you are all powerless… to keep this city from being destroyed."

"You're wrong! We'll stop Z-one no matter what!" Yusei declared.

"A pity… I won't be around… to see you try." Paradox chuckled. "That would be… very amusing to see."

Paradox closed his eyes and what remained of his body disintegrated into black dust. Most of the cards that remained from his deck became dust as well.

"So now what do we do?" Kiryu asked.

"I think it's obvious what we do." Joey replied. "We get on that fortress and kick Z-one's ass!"

"And how do you suggest we do that, you imbecile?" Kaiba asked.

"Well we… uh… well…" Joey spoke as he scratched his head. "Anybody got any ideas?"

"What's that Arc Cradle thing going to do?" Tea asked.

"I think I know." Bruno answered. "The Arc Cradle is powered by a negative Momentum Reactor. If I'm right, Z-one is planning to lower the Arc Cradle so that it come in contact with the reactor powering the city."

"But if those reactors come in contact, it'll destroy everything!" Yusei realized.

"Exactly." Bruno nodded.

"Well however Z-one is planning to destroy this city, how're we going to get aboard?" Jaden wondered.

"I think I can help with that." Noah interrupted. "My D-Wheel has technology that allows me to create a portal between here and the Arc Cradle. Even though the Arc Cradle now exists in the same time period as we do, it should still allow to get aboard."

"What do you think Bruno?" Yusei asked.

"It should work." Bruno agreed. "It might be our only option."

"Are you serious?" Kaiba protested. "We're going to trust this spoiled brat to guide us aboard that floating fortress?"

"Kaiba, this is no time to argue!" Yugi told him. "We have to get on that fortress or else everything will be lost!"

"That's right." Yusei agreed. "Lead the way Noah."

With that, everyone started their D-Wheels back up and headed down the track, with Noah taking point. The green-haired android fired a beam of white light from the front of his D-Wheel. The end of the beam hit an empty spot in the air and formed a large portal of light a few feet away. Everyone drove into the portal to where the final battle for the future would soon take place.

* * *

**Author's Note:** This chapter ended up being a tiny bit shorter than I had expected it to be. It seems I miscalculated where to end the duel in the last chapter. Still, I think there was a lot of action in this chapter. Anyway, we're now getting closer to the climax of this story. Though it will be a little while before the final duel with Z-one. So stay tune.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	16. The Three Gears

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix.

* * *

Chapter 15: The Three Gears

After what seemed like only seconds, Yusei and the others came through the portal of light created by Noah and arrived inside a massive grey corridor large enough for their D-Wheels. Everyone knew they had arrived aboard the Arc Cradle. Though just where they were inside the floating fortress, they could only guess. Even Noah had no idea where they had ended up. They were truly in unknown enemy territory.

"So now what?" Tea wondered.

"Alexis has to be on this fortress somewhere." Jaden pointed out. "One thing we need to do is find her."

"That's all well and good, but I think it's obvious what are next move should be." Kaiba spoke. "The first thing we have to do is find Z-one and crush him!"

"Hold on! I think there's something else we have to do first." Bruno interrupted. "This fortress is one giant Momentum Reactor. The only way to truly stop Z-one is to shut that reactor down."

"So how do we do that?" Raven asked.

"If the Arc Cradle is really a giant Momentum Reactor, than there should be three planetary gears and a main gear." Yusei explained. "If we sabotage the gears, the reactor should shut down."

"But then won't this whole big fortress just stop floating and crash on the city anyway?" Carly pointed out.

"Not necessarily." Bruno answered. "The Arc Cradle could simply self destruct."

"And take us out along with it. Brilliant." Jack sarcastically remarked.

"Look, if we don't take out the reactor, the city will be destroyed anyway." Yusei pointed out. "I think this is the best plan we can come up with."

"I managed to hack into the Arc Cradle's computer and found a map of the layout." Noah interrupted. "I'm sending it to all of your D-Wheels. We should be able to use this to find our way to the three gears."

"Okay, here's what we'll do." Yusei decided. "We'll split into three teams and take out the three planetary gears. Aki, Bruno, and I will take the first gear."

"If it's all right Yusei, Tea and I would like to go with you." Yugi offered.

"Count me in too." Jaden agreed.

"Okay." Yusei nodded. "Jack, you and Carly will go with the twins and all three Kaiba brothers to take out the second gear."

"Now wait just a minute, Yusei!" Jack protested. "I'm fine with taking Leo and Luna along, but why do I have to team up with that second-rate duelist and his dysfunctional family?"

"Who're you calling second rate?" Kaiba shot back.

"Look Jack, like it or Kaiba's a powerful duelist." Yusei told him. "You might need his help to take on whatever you might run into on the way to the gear."

"Yeah! So put your ego in check and let's do this!" Crow added.

"Fine." Jack huffed. "But you're going to owe me big time Yusei!"

"So now that we got that settled, I guess you want the rest of us to take out the third gear." Crow deduced.

"Right." Yusei nodded. "Once we're all done, we'll follow Noah's map and meet up at the central gear."

"Then let's go!" Yugi decided. "We have no time to waste!"

With that, the group split up and followed the directions from Noah's map that would take them to the gears. As Yusei's team headed for the first gear, they found no obstacles in their way, only a long dark corridor with nothing in it. In a matter of minutes they reached the first gear, which was a very large round chamber with rotating light-grey walls. Waiting in the center of the room on a D-Wheel though was a young blonde woman who was very familiar to Yusei and Aki.

"Well, well. I was wondering if I'd run into you." Sherry smirked.

"What the…? Sherry?" a surprised Aki identified.

"You know her?" Tea asked.

"That's Sherry LeBlanc, one of the members of Aki's elimination squad down in the Pit." Yusei explained.

"You mean that jail you guys were in?" Jaden recalled.

"Sherry, what're you doing here?" a confused Aki asked.

"This is where I ended up after the Infinity Triad killed Divine." Sherry explained. "Nice to see you again, Izayoi."

"It's Fudo now, actually." Aki corrected.

"Oh yeah. I heard that you ended up marrying that boy toy of yours from the Pit." Sherry chuckled. "He's not bad looking actually. I'll say one thing about Izayoi, excuse me, Fudo. You've got good taste."

"Sherry, we don't have time to visit!" Aki told her. "We have to shut down this reactor and stop Z-one!"

"I know why you're here." Sherry replied. "Z-one thought you'd come aboard and try to shut down the reactor. Which is why he put me in charge of guarding this gear."

"You're actually helping Z-one?" a surprised Yusei realized.

"That's right." Sherry confirmed. "The only way to shut down this gear is to beat me in a duel."

"Well if you want a duel, you've got one!" Yusei declared.

Aki raised her arm in front of Yusei. "This duel is mine."

"Aki, are you sure?" Yusei asked. "You told me about what she can do."

"I'll be fine." Aki assured him. "Besides, this duel has been coming for a long time."

"I was hoping that I'd get to duel you." Sherry admitted as Aki drove up. "I'm going to enjoy finally putting you in your place."

"Let's just get this duel started." Aki told her.

"Fine." Sherry chuckled. "The first one to make a complete lap around the chamber gets the first turn."

With that, Aki and Sherry took off full speed around the chamber as Yusei and the others watched from the sidelines. The two were neck and neck until Sherry pulled ahead at the last second.

"Tack Field, activate!" Sherry called out. "Mind's Eye Road!"

In seconds the chamber transformed into an outdoor field with strange blue grass. The ground under Sherry and Aki's D-Wheels changed into a circular road made of yellow brick. The sky above the battlefield was purple, and floating in it was a large disembodied eyeball.

"I set one card on the field!" Sherry announced. "Then I summon Apocalypse Elf Commando in Attack Mode!"

Appearing on the track was a muscular male elf warrior with silver skin and long white hair. Around his head was a steel-grey headband and his outfit consisted of dark-grey futuristic armor that looked slightly damaged from combat. His right arm was mechanical, with the forearm being a large laser cannon.

"That ends my turn." Sherry announced. "Let's see you take me down, Fudo."

Aki drew her first card. "I summon Rose Paladin in Attack Mode!"

Appearing on the track was a beautiful yet well-muscled woman with tan skin and straight pink hair that ended just above the shoulders. The warrior was clad in pinkish armor that showed off her arms and legs, as well as her toned abs. Hanging from her neck was a long red cape, and in her right hand she carried a large pinkish lance.

"Rose Paladin, attack Apocalypse Elf Commando!" Aki commanded. "Rose Driver!"

"I activate my Trap, Negate Attack!" Sherry quickly announced. "Looks like your attack is canceled out."

Rose Paladin charged in to strike the Elf Commando with her lance. But before she could hit, a vortex suddenly appeared in front the elf and blew Rose Paladin backwards.

"So is that all you've got?" Sherry grinned.

"I set one card on the field and end my turn!" a discouraged Aki announced.

Sherry drew her next card. "I summon Apocalypse Elf Strategist in Defense Mode!"

Appearing on the track was another silver skinned elf with a large baldhead that looked as though it housed an enlarged brain. The elf had a cybernetic implant over its left eye, and was clothed in tattered grey robes.

"Now I activate the effect of Apocalypse Elf Commando!" Sherry announced. "Once per turn, I can guess the name of one random card in my opponent's hand. If I guess wrong, I can't attack at all this turn. But if I guess right, Apocalypse Elf Commando can attack directly!"

"What?" Aki exclaimed.

"That's a pretty big gamble." Jaden remarked. "I mean if she guesses right, it's pretty bad for Aki. But what're the chances?"

"Let's see…" Sherry spoke as she closed her eyes. "The card you have in the far right of your hand is… Queen Angel of Roses!"

"Yeah, you're right." Aki grudgingly confirmed.

"She actually guessed it?" a stunned Tea exclaimed.

"I suppose it was the most logical guess to make." Bruno pointed out. "Sherry probably anticipated that Aki was preparing to summon Queen Angel with Rose Paladin's effect."

"Apocalypse Elf Commando! Attack Fudo directly!" Sherry commanded. "Laser Sniper!"

"Not so fast! I activate my Trap!" Aki interrupted.

"Hold on!" Sherry interrupted. "Before you activate that Trap, I activate the effect of Mind's Eye Road! Once per turn, when my opponent is about to activate a set Spell or Trap card, Mind's Eye Road lets me guess the name of that card. If I guess wrong, my life points are cut in half. But if I guess right, that card is destroyed before its effect can activate. And the card you're about to activate is… Wall of Thorns!"

Suddenly the large eyeball floating in the sky fired a bolt of blue lightning that destroyed Aki's Trap card. An instant later, Apocalypse Elf Commando fired a massive beam of blue energy from the cannon built into his arm. The beam struck Aki and her life points dropped to 2300.

"No way!" Jaden exclaimed. "Sherry was able to guess Aki's face down card too?"

"It could be that Ms. LeBlanc is so familiar with Aki's strategies that she's able to anticipate the cards she plays." Bruno assumed.

"No, it's more than that." Yusei revealed. "Sherry has psychic powers."

"So she's like Aki?" Tea asked.

"Not quite." Yusei replied. "Aki's powers are mainly telekinetic. Sherry's powers are telepathic, meaning she can read minds."

"But if she can read minds, that means she can see Aki's entire hand!" Yugi realized.

"How did you think this was going to go down, Fudo?" Sherry laughed. "You knew I could read minds going into this duel. Did you really think you could block me out?"

"Are you done?" an irritated Aki asked.

"Not quite." Sherry replied. "I'll just set these two cards on the field and end my turn."

Aki drew her next card. "I summon Twilight Rose Knight in Attack Mode!"

Appearing on the track was a child-like warrior with pale-blue hair. He had on black and dark-red armor and carried a short sword.

"Using Twilight Rose Knight's effect, I summon Rose Lover to the field!" Aki continued. Appearing next to the young knight was a young woman with blonde hair wearing a red dress and roses in her hair. "I tune the level three Twilight Rose Knight into the level four Rose Lover for a level seven Synchro Summon!"

Twilight Rose Knight raised his sword and changed into three green rings of light. The rings encircled Rose Lover and transformed her into four white stars.

"Chilling Flames engulf the entire world. Pitch-dark Flower set into bloom!" Aki chanted. "Synchro Summon! Appear now, Black Rose Dragon!"

The rings flashed and ignited into an inferno of purple flames. In moments the flames subsided to reveal Aki's faithful dragon.

"I activate Black Rose Dragon's effect!" Aki announced. "When she's summoned, I can destroy all cards on the field!"

"Oh no you don't!" Sherry interrupted. "I activate my Trap, Synchro Shutdown! This card not only stops your dragon's effect from working, it also destroys it!"

Aki's dragon suddenly cried out as its body was transformed into a red wire frame and exploded in a flash of fire and smoke. When the smoke cleared, only Rose Paladin remained on the track with Aki.

"In addition to destroying your dragon, Synchro Shutdown also let's me draw one card." Sherry continued. "You know, I didn't even read your mind to see that move coming. I knew you'd try and use that dragon of yours to try and take back the field."

"Sherry's not only reading Aki's mind, she's anticipating all her moves." Yugi observed. "At this rate, Aki might just lose."

"So are all of your moves going to be this transparent?" Sherry mocked.

"Rose Paladin, attack Apocalypse Elf Commando!" Aki commanded. "Rose Driver!"

"Guess that answers my question." Sherry chuckled. "Since I have two Apocalypse Elves on the field, I activate my Continuous Trap, Apocalypse Safe Zone! Now whenever you declare an attack, I can guess the name of one random card in your hand. If I guess wrong, your attack gets through. But if I guess right, your attack is stopped."

"Damn it!" Aki cursed.

"Let's see…" Sherry continued as she closed her eyes. "The middle card in your hand is… Dark Verger!"

"…You're right again." Aki admitted.

Before Rose Paladin's lance could land a blow on the Elf Commando, a barrier of blue light appeared in front of the two elves and knocked the female warrior back. With the attack ended, the energy field disappeared.

"I don't believe it!" Tea exclaimed. "She didn't even name Queen Angel of Roses a second time! Sherry just looked into Aki's mind again and named another one of her cards!"

"Sherry's like the worst possible opponent Aki could face." Jaden declared. "She not only read Aki's mind, she knows all of her moves too."

"You know this duel can only end one way." Sherry gloated. "So are you done with your turn, or are you just going to stall for time?"

"I… end my turn." Aki reluctantly announced.

Sherry drew her next card. "I activate Apocalypse Elf Commando's effect to guess one card in my opponent's hand! And the last card in your hand is… Glow-Up Bulb!"

"Right again." Aki sighed.

"Apocalypse Elf Commando, attack Fudo directly!" Sherry commanded. "Laser Sniper!"

The elf soldier took aim and fired another blue beam past Rose Paladin. The beam struck Aki and her life points took a steep drop to 600.

"No matter what move you try and make, I'm going to see it coming a mile away." Sherry told her. "Face it Fudo, this duel is already mine."

* * *

**Author's Note:** I'm sure nobody thought that Sherry and Misty ended up on the Arc Cradle just to be Z-one's cheerleaders. Anyway, I obviously gave Sherry a deck of original cards to use in this duel. Some of them were inspired by the Elf monsters Sherry used in the manga. The post-apocalyptic feel they have is meant to symbolize her working for Z-one. Stay tuned for the next chapter.

In the meantime, please review and let me know what you think.


	17. Cold Fire

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix.

* * *

Chapter 16: Cold Fire

"It's probably pointless, but I'll just set one card on the field and end my turn." Sherry smugly announced. "It's your last turn Fudo. Things will go a lot easier on you if you don't struggle."

Aki drew her next card. "First I switch Rose Paladin to Defense Mode. Then I activate the Spell card, Card Destruction! Now we both have to discard our hands and draw new ones."

"As if that's going to help you." Sherry laughed. "Throwing away your current hand won't help. I have to do is just read your mind to see what new cards you drew. Now are you done, or are you just going to stall for time?"

"Before I end my turn, there's something I have to ask you Sherry." Aki replied. "Why are you helping Z-one? Is it just so you can duel me?"

"Please, you're just icing on the cake." Sherry told her. "The only reason I'm helping Z-one is so he can change the past and help me make a better life for myself."

"What do you mean?" Aki asked.

"My parents died in a car accident when I was a kid." Sherry began. "After I ended up an orphan. Not long after, my little 'gift' developed, the power that allows me to read minds. Everyone treated me like I was a freak! You know the rest."

"So I guess we're sort of alike." Aki observed. "But Sherry, is changing your past really worth the lives of all the innocent people in Neo Domino?"

"I don't give a damn what happens to those jerks!" Sherry told her. "A lot of the people in that city are the ones who treated me like I was a monster. Besides, with what Z-one showed me about the future, the rest of the world will be a lot better off if that city gets blown away."

"You're wrong!" Aki argued. "Saving the future and changing your past isn't worth all those innocent lives! Look Sherry, I've lived the same kind of life as you did. But just because your past wasn't all that great, doesn't mean that your whole life is ruined."

"Easy for you to say." Sherry scoffed. "You lucked into marrying a rich guy who doesn't look at you as a freak. The rest of us don't have it as easy as you. Now are you done?"

"Yeah… I end my turn." Aki announced.

"Man, this is not good." Jaden commented on the sidelines. "Unless Aki figured out some magic way to stop Sherry from reading her mind while they were talking, she's done for."

"If only it was Yugi dueling Sherry instead of Aki." Tea remarked. "Then her mind reading powers wouldn't be a problem."

"What do you mean?" Yusei asked.

"Back when I dueled Maximillion Pegasus in Duelist Kingdom, he had a Millennium Item called the Millennium Eye." The Pharaoh explained. "It allowed him to read my mind and see my hand. To beat him, my partner and I would switch minds during our turns, blocking the power of his Millennium Eye."

"But Aki can't do that." Yusei pointed out. "She doesn't have another soul living inside her like you do."

"True. But in the end, it was not the mind shuffle tactic that allowed my partner and I to beat Pegasus." Yugi revealed. "It was the bond we had with our friends."

"Your bond…" Yusei repeated as an idea came to him. "I may have a way to stop Sherry's powers! I don't know if it'll work, but I have to try!"

With that, Yusei closed his eyes raised his right hand to his chest and clenched his fist. The mark of the Crimson Dragon's head began to glow.

* * *

Jack's team traveled down the corridor that was supposed to lead to the second gear. So far they had encountered no traps or obstacles to stop them. Yet it also didn't seem like they were getting any closer to the gear, only more hallway.

"This map of yours better be leading us to this gear Noah." Kaiba warned. "Otherwise you're going to regret wasting our time!"

"As if you could do anything to harm my superior body, Seto." Noah scoffed.

Just as Jack was about to butt into the argument, the mark of the Crimson Dragon's wings lit up on his arm. The marks of Leo and Luna lit up as well.

"Hey, what's going on?" Carly asked upon noticing the marks.

"Yusei and Aki need our help." Luna sensed.

"They must be in pretty big trouble." Leo assumed.

"Yusei, you better not lose!" Jack whispered as he and the twins all closed their eyes. With that, their Signer marks began to glow brighter.

* * *

Crow's team drove down the long corridor towards that was supposed to take them to the third gear. But all they had been finding so far was more and more hallway. It seemed like the corridor was endless.

"Hey. How much further to this gear thing?" Joey asked. "This is starting to get pretty dull."

"The map says we're over half way there." Kiryu assured him. "It shouldn't be too much longer."

Before the conversation could continue, the mark of the Crimson Dragon's tail lit up. At the same time, the seal of the Crimson Dragon lit up on Raven's back.

"What's with the glowing tattoos?" Joey asked.

"They're not tattoos." Raven informed him. "Crow, Yusei and Aki are in some kind of trouble."

"Hang in there you guys." Crow spoke as both he and Raven closed their eyes. The dragon marks began to glow brighter.

* * *

Aki's mind raced as she tried to figure out a way to block Sherry's probe into her mind. She tried thinking of something else besides the cards in her hand, but she knew it wouldn't work. It certainly hadn't worked during the last few turns. It seemed like there was no way out.

"I activate Apocalypse Elf Commando's effect to guess one card in your hand!" Sherry announced.

Aki closed her eyes to prepare herself for the deathblow from Sherry's elf. Suddenly the claw mark on her arm began to glow and she could feel a sort of warmth flowing through her. She knew somehow that it was Yusei and the other Signers.

"The card in the center of your hand is…" Sherry began as closed her eyes. But they soon snapped open again in shock. "What the…? I can't see any of the cards in your hand! All I'm seeing is a picture of your friends and the seal of that stupid red dragon of yours! What the hell are you doing?"

"You're mind reading ends now Sherry!" Yusei declared, getting the blonde duelist's attention. "My friends and I aren't going to let you read Aki's mind anymore!"

"Why you…" Sherry began to curse.

"Ms. LeBlanc, you still have to guess what card Aki has in her hand." Yugi reminded her. "Though since you can't actually see what the card is, you're going to have to guess. You'd better hope that you get lucky."

"Damn!" Sherry cursed. "Fine! The card you have is… Evil Thorn?"

"Sorry, you're dead wrong." Aki smiled. "Looks like you can't attack me at all this turn."

"It seems you've relied on your mind reading powers for far too long, Ms. LeBlanc." Yugi remarked. "Because of that, you're duelist instincts have long sensed eroded and become dulled. There's no way you can win this duel now."

"Oh yeah? Well eat this!" Sherry shot back. "I activate my Trap, Apocalypse Counterstrike! When the effect of one of my Apocalypse Elves backfires, I can destroy one of my opponent's monsters and inflict 200 points of damage for each elf I have on the field!"

A massive bolt of blue lightening shot up from Sherry's Trap and struck the giant eyeball in the sky. The eye reflected the bolt back down towards Aki and the spectators in a wide ray. Aki cried out as Rose Paladin was destroyed and her life points went down to 200. At the same time, Yusei and others were hit and knocked off their D-Wheels. When the dust had finally settled, the mark on Aki's arm was no longer glowing. She could no longer sense Yusei and the other Signers.

Aki turned her head to where Yusei and the others had been watching the duel. They were all on the ground and weren't moving at all. Panic began to rise up in Aki. She couldn't help but fear the worst.

"Oops. Looks like I got a little carried away." Sherry smirked. "Seems that husband of yours just bought the farm. Serves him right for butting into our duel."

"Yusei's… dead?" a shocked Aki spoke. "No… no he can't be gone!"

"C'mon Fudo. You know as well as I do that nobody can survive a hit like that." Sherry told her. "Now then. I'll set one card on the field and end my turn. Don't worry Fudo. You'll see your husband again, after I kill you."

Aki couldn't believe Yusei was dead, yet she also knew that Sherry was right. As much as she denied it, Aki knew that even Yusei could survive a hit like the one from Sherry's trap. She was completely alone again, just like she was when her parents died. There was nothing left to Aki now, nothing except a need to make Sherry pay for what she had done. Her mind went white with rage and sorrow.

"You… YOU BITCH!" Aki shouted at the top of her lungs as she drew her next card. As she drew the card it sparked with purple flames. "I summon Fire Rose Specter in Attack Mode!"

Appearing on the track was the large seedpod with two sinister eyes on the front and a large rose growing out the top. Its whole body burned with an unearthly purple flame.

"Using their effects, I summon Dark Verger and Glow-Up Bulb from the Graveyard!" Aki announced. The one-eyed seedpod and two-eyes plant sprout materialized on the track. "Now I activate Rose Specter's effect! By banishing Rose Paladin from my Graveyard, I can summon a Fire Rose Token to the field!"

A spark shot off the ghostly seedpod and grew into a strange green plant with a purple aura. The top of the plant bloomed into a rose and caught on fire.

"I tune the level one Glow-Up Bulb into the level two Dark Verger for a level three Synchro Summon!" Aki announced.

Glow-Up Bulb transformed into a single ring of red light and encircled Dark Verger. The plant sprout in turn became two balls of crimson flame.

"The flames of hatred spark into blazing flowers! Their scattered petals create the path toward ruin!" Aki chanted. "Synhcro Summon! Ignite, Synchro Tuner, Cyber Rose Angel!"

The lights ignited into a pillar of flames that shot into the sky. In moments the fire subsided to reveal Aki's cybernetic angel. And the eyes beneath her visor were glowing an ominous crimson red.

"Now the effect of Cyber Rose Angel activates!" Aki announced. "When she's summoned to the field, she inflicts 300 points of damage!"

The cybernetic angel aimed her mechanical arm at Sherry and fired a ball of crimson flame. Sherry cried out as the projectile hit her in the back and reduced her life points to 3700.

"Hey! That really hurt!" Sherry told her.

"I tune the level one Fire Rose Specter into the level one Fire Rose Token for a level two Synchro Summon!" Aki continued, not at all hearing Sherry's voice.

The flaming seedpod exploded and changed into a single ring of red light. The ring went around the Rose Token and changed it into a ball of purple flame.

"Flames of rage ignite to become an inferno! Burn and become the path that leads to destruction!" Aki chanted. "Synchro Summon! Ignite, Black Rose Salamander!"

The lights ignited into a pillar of purple flames. In moments the fire subsided to reveal a large lizard with a long neck. Its four legs were brown and the feet had red claws. Its tail was also brown and was covered in long red thorns. The rest of its body except for its face was covered in red rose petals, with the ones at the top of its neck forming a sort of fan. The lizard's face was black with glowing purple eyes. Every now an then it would flick out its long tongue that resembled a plume of fire.

"I activate Black Rose Salamander's effect and summon Black Rose Dragon to the field in Defense Mode with zero ATK!" Aki announced.

The salamander breathed out a thin stream of purple flames that created a ring of fire on the track. Black Rose Dragon rose out of the center of the ring with a swirling gust of wind. As soon as the dragon appeared, the flames subsided.

"I end my turn." Aki announced.

"That's it?" Sherry asked. "Well that was a lot of trouble for nothing. It doesn't matter what monsters you have on the field. Now that your dead husband can no longer block my mind scanning powers, your life points are as good as exposed. Oh well. I'm getting tired of this duel anyway."

As Sherry drew her next card, Yusei and the others regained consciousness. Slowly all five of them got to their feet.

"Is everyone okay?" Yusei asked.

"I think so." Jaden answered as he rubbed the back of his head.

"I'm sore all over." Tea complained.

"It seems the duel has advanced since we were knocked out." Yugi observed.

Aki meanwhile was completely oblivious to Yusei and the others waking up. She began to speed up her D-Wheel. "Cold flames of rage ignite into a burning super nova! Bloody red flower set into bloom!"

"I activate the effect of Apocalypse Elf Commando to guess one of the cards in your hand!" Sherry announced. "And the card in the center of your hand is…" As soon as Sherry closed her eyes to read Aki's mind, the snapped open again in horror. "What… what the hell…?"

"Delta Accel!" Aki called out.

Aki and her three monsters picked up speed. The instant they did, the entire area was engulfed in a massive explosion of purple fire that almost knocked Yusei and the others off their feet again. When the explosion died down, the entire field had completely transformed into an endless field of red roses. A calm yet eerie breeze blew through the field, carrying with it a few stray petals. The sky above was black with only a gigantic moon the color of blood.

"What just happened?" Tea wondered. "Where are we?"

"Better question. What the heck is that?" Jaden asked as he pointed at Aki.

Flying closely above Aki was a dragon that resembled Aki's Blazing Rose Dragon but was twice the size. It had six wings instead of four, and its chest was covered in dark-red armor colored like dried blood. Adorning the center of the dragon's chest plate was a diamond-shaped gem that glowed with an eerie purple light. Its head had four long red horns that curved upward and its face was white and skull-like. In the sockets of its eyes glowed phosphorous balls of purple light.

"Burn away this worthless world, Rose Empress Dragon!" Aki called out. The dragon roared in response.

"Bruno, is that what I think it is?" Yusei asked.

"Yes. It's a Delta Accel Synchro monster." Bruno confirmed. "But something's very wrong."

"What the hell happened to the field?" Sherry demanded to know.

"When Rose Empress Dragon is summoned, I can destroy all others cards on the field." Aki coldly explained. "And I destroyed your Field Spell, I was able to play Bloody Rose Garden from my deck."

"Yeah, well the joke's on you. The card I set on the field earlier is a Trap called Landmine Omega." Sherry revealed. "When it's destroyed by an opponent's card effect, I can destroy one of my opponent's monsters and we both take damage equal to its ATK. And since your dragon has 3900 ATK, it looks like we both lose this one."

On cue, Rose Empress Dragon was enveloped in an explosion of red flames. But when the smoke cleared, Aki's dark dragon was still on the battlefield. Neither of their life points had dropped at all.

"What… what the hell?" a horrified Sherry asked.

"Rose Empress Dragon can't be destroyed by my opponent's card effects." Aki explained. "If you're done, I'm starting my turn." She drew a card from her deck. "I activate Rose Empress Dragon's effect and banish Queen Angel of Roses from my Graveyard. Until the end of this turn, Rose Empress Dragon gains the ATK of Queen Angel!"

A ghostly version of Aki's masked angel appeared on the track. Rose Empress Dragon opened her jaws and sucked the Queen Angel in like a vacuum. The gemstone on her armor began to glow brighter.

"Next I activate the effect of Bloody Rose Garden and banish Dark Verger from my Graveyard." Aki continued. "By banishing a Plant monster from my Graveyard, Bloody Rose Garden lets me summon a Bloody Rose Token to my opponent's field."

One of the roses on the ground near Sherry suddenly glowed with a purple aura and lifted into the air to hover alongside her. The flower grew in size and its head bent forward, opening wider to reveal a purple eye with a slit pupil.

"Why the hell did you summon a defense monster to my field if I was wide open?" Sherry asked. "The ATK of that dragon of yours is more than enough to finish me."

"Rose Empress Dragon, destroy the Bloody Rose!" Aki commanded. "Black Rose Hellfire!"

The dragon reared back her head and blasted the Bloody Rose with a storm of purple flames. When the strange flower was destroyed, a cluster of thorns hit Sherry and left cuts on her face and arms. Her life points dropped to 3300.

"What the hell?" Sherry exclaimed.

"Each time a Bloody Rose Token is destroyed, my opponent takes 400 points of damage." Aki explained. "And when a Rose monster like Rose Empress Dragon destroys an opponent's monster by battle, Bloody Rose Garden lets that monster attack again this turn."

"W-Wait a minute!" a horrified Sherry begged.

"Burn." Aki told her with an emotionless expression. "Rose Empress Dragon, attack her directly! Black Rose Hellfire!"

The dragon reared her head back again and blasted Sherry with another intense storm of flames. Sherry screamed as her remaining life points dropped to zero. When the flames finally cleared, Sherry was on the ground face down. The back half of her D-Wheel had been obliterated. The severed end of the cycle was a mass of melted metal.

"Looks like the duels finally over." Tea observed.

"Wait. Something's wrong!" Jaden observed. "If the duel's over, why's Aki's Field Spell still activate."

The others noticed that they were still indeed standing in the endless field of Roses created by Aki's card. Even more unsettling though was that Rose Empress Dragon had not vanished. She was still hovering above Aki.

"What's going on?" Yugi wondered.

"Oh no!" Yusei exclaimed as he got back on his D-Wheel and drove toward Aki.

Aki meanwhile had parked her D-Wheel right in front of Sherry. The fallen Turbo Duelist raised her head slightly to look at her destroyer. Aki was getting ready to command her dragon to deliver the deathblow.

"Aki, stop!" Yusei called out.

Aki was snapped from the trance she was in. Turning her head. She saw Yusei pull up right next to her. Reality started to sink in as she realized that Yusei was still alive.

"The duel is over. You won." Yusei told her. "There's no reason to keep fighting."

The flame of rage in Aki's mind died down. As it did, Rose Empress Dragon shattered apart, as did the field of roses. Taking the field's place was the original chamber that the duel had first started in. The wall of the chamber had stopped rotating and a hidden door had opened up.

Aki removed her helmet as she continued to look at Yusei. "You're… still alive."

"You okay?" Yusei asked.

In answer to his question, Aki broke down and threw herself into him. Yusei quickly put his arms around her and held her tight. It took a few moments for Aki to calm down.

"Uh, I hate to interrupt this moment, but what just happened?" Jaden asked after Aki had calmed down.

"Aki performed Delta Accel. But it went sideways." Bruno explained.

"I… don't really remember what happened." Aki spoke. "After Sherry told me you had all been killed my mind sort of went blank. It's all a blur up to the point where Yusei stopped me."

"In order to achieve Delta Accel, one must have a higher level of Clear Mind called Top Clear Mind." Bruno explained. "But the emotions Aki was feeling caused her to go into another state of Clear Mind. Let's call it Cold Clear Mind for the time being. In that state, the Delta Accel Summon that Aki performed was so intense that it caused a miniature Zero Reverse that spawned the monster Aki used to defeat Ms. LeBlanc."

"Damn." Sherry cursed as she slowly rose to her feet.

"Are you okay Sherry?" a concerned Aki asked.

"What the hell do you care?" Sherry shot back. "You almost fried me, you bitch!"

"Shut the hell up!" Yusei fired back, causing Sherry to flinch a bit. "If it wasn't for you, none of this would've happened!"

"Yusei. Let me handle this." Yugi calmly interrupted as he walked up.

"Let me guess, you're going to lecture me now." Sherry assumed. "Well you can just buzz off!"

"Ms. LeBlanc, you said before that you were helping Z-one because you wished to create a better past for yourself." The Pharaoh recalled. "But nothing good can come from taking so many innocent lives. The past is the past, but maybe we can help you create a better future. Why not join us?"

"…Oh hell. It's better than staying here I guess." Sherry admitted.

"You can ride with me, since your own ride seems to have bit the dust." Jaden offered.

"C'mon! Let's go stop Z-one!" Yugi told everyone.

As everyone else prepared to take off, Yusei looked back at Aki. "You okay now?"

"Yeah. I'm fine." Aki assured him. "Let's just beat Z-one and get out of here, okay?"

Yusei gave her a quick kiss on the lips. "Okay."

In moments everyone took off through the hidden door that had opened up inside the chamber. Beyond the door was a dark narrow corridor wide enough for only three D-Wheels to ride alongside one another.

Bruno pulled up closer to Jaden's D-Wheel so he could speak with Sherry. "Sorry we had to meet under such circumstances Ms. LeBlanc."

"Whatever." Sherry indifferently replied.

Bruno rubbed the back of his head. "So… ever date an android?"

* * *

Jack's team finally reached the chamber that was the second gear. Waiting in the center was a young woman with very light-brown hair wearing an ice-blue helmet with a sleeveless white and blue uniform slightly similar to the red one Jaden wore. The young woman was sitting atop an ice blue D-Wheel.

"Looks like Z-one has a little surprise waiting for us." Jack observed.

"I guess we have to beat her before we can shut down the gear." Leo deduced.

"Hey! I think that's Alexis Rhodes." Carly suddenly realized.

"The girl Jaden Yuki came here to rescue?" Jack asked.

"I'll handle this." Carly decided. "You guys wait here."

As Carly drove up to Alexis, the Queen of Obelisk Blue glared back at her with cold eyes. "I've been ordered by Lord Z-one to guard this gear. Leave immediately!"

"Hi, you might not be aware of this, but this Z-one guy you're working for is trying destroy our city and kill a lot of people." Carly informed her. "So maybe you can just step aside and let us take out this gear."

"The only way for this gear to shut down is to defeat me in a duel." Alexis informed her. "I doubt someone like you would have a chance against me. Do yourself a favor and leave now, four-eyes."

After a moment, Carly calmly removed her glasses and glared at Alexis with her ash grey eyes. "It's on, bitch!"

* * *

**Author's Note:** I hope everyone enjoyed seeing Aki go berserk again. I had to think long and hard about what do do for Aki's Delta Accel monster. In the end, I kept her effects fairly simple. Anyway, the question about what happened to Alexis has finally been answered. The next duel should hopefully be fairly amusing, so stay tuned.

In the meantime, please review and let me know what you think.


	18. White Night Ride

**Author's Note:** Apologies for the delay in putting up this chapter. I decided to take a little time last week to watch some new anime and repair another story that I had pretty much abandoned. Plus the beginning of this week has been a little hectic for me. Anyway, I hope this chapter is worth the wait.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix.

* * *

Chapter 17: White Night Ride

Carly and Alexis had moved their D-Wheels to the edge of the gear chamber so their duel could begin. Jack and the others meanwhile stayed by the entryway so they could watch. In moments, both Carly and Alexis took off at full speed. At first it seemed like Alexis was going to be the first to complete the lap. But at the last second, Carly bumped into Alexis' side, allowing her to pull ahead. It was clear there was no love lost between the two duelists.

"I'll give that girlfriend of yours points for aggressiveness, Atlas." Kaiba remarked on the sidelines. "But she better not screw this up."

"Don't worry Kaiba. Carly can hold her own." Jack assured him.

"I find it a little hard to believe that your nerdy girlfriend could be much of a duelist." Kaiba scoffed.

"At least Jack as girlfriend." Mokuba mumbled.

"What was that Mokuba?" Kaiba asked.

"Oh c'mon Seto. Don't you think it's time you started seeing people?" Mokuba suggested.

"Mokuba, now is neither the time or the place." Kaiba told him.

"Well, well. So mister big-shot duelist doesn't have a girlfriend of his own." Jack grinned.

"Shut up!" Kaiba shot back.

"I have to agree, Seto. That is pretty pathetic." Noah smirked.

"You're one to talk! You don't have a girlfriend either, you stuck-up brat!" Kaiba pointed out.

"Until recently, I was a mind trapped inside a computer." Noah reminded him. "What's your excuse?"

"Will you all can it?" Luna cut in. "The duel is just getting started."

"Track Field, activate!" Carly called out. "Future Visions!"

The inside of the chamber transformed into a vast expanse of space filled by a sort of purple mist. A ring of a sort of purple energy formed the track that Carly and Alexis drove upon.

"I summon Fortune Lady Light in Attack Mode!" Carly announced. "And because of Future Visions, her summoning gets moved to my next turn."

Appearing on the track was a young woman with short blonde hair, yellow skin, and gold eyes. Protruding from the sides of her head were two narrow black bat-like wings, and on each side of her face was a small red triangular mark. Glowing through the hair covering her forehead was a golden eye symbol similar to the one on Yugi's Millennium Puzzle. The woman's outfit consisted of a skimpy black swimsuit-like garment with a two-piece yellow that had a skirt that was open in front, and a pair of black high-heeled boots that went up past her knees. In her hand she carried a staff with a hooked blade. Only a split second after Light appeared on the track, she vanished like a mirage.

"Since Light just left the field, her effect lets me summon another Fortune Lady from my deck." Carly announced. "Appear now, Fortune Lady Dark!"

Appearing in Light's place was another young woman with purple skin and long purple hair. Like Light, she had a pair of narrow batwings protruding from the sides of her head, and also wore an almost identical outfit. The only difference was the fabric of her dress was purple instead of yellow. Adorning the young woman's right cheek was a red mark, and shining through the hair covering her forehead was a purple eye symbol. In her hand she held a bladed staff very much like Light's.

"Looks like I get to play now." Dark smirked. "This girl must've really ticked you off, huh Carly?"

"Yeah, but she's been brainwashed like those other duelists from the past. So she doesn't really know what she's doing." Carly replied. "Let's try not to mess her up too badly, okay?"

"Alright, but I can't make any promises." Dark grinned.

"Noted." Carly nodded. "Okay, next I activate Foolish Burial and send Fortune Lady Water from my deck to the Graveyard! Then I set one card on the field and end my turn!"

"So you like to throw your opponents off balance by delaying their Normal Summons." Alexis observed as she drew her first card. "Not a bad strategy, but it's one that I can easily get around. Since you have a monster on the field, I can Special Summon Ice Mirror Gardna from my hand in Defense Mode!"

Materializing on the track by Alexis in a kneeling position was a bulky-looking knight wearing white armor that looked as though it had been carved from ice. In front of itself, the knight held a massive white shield with a polished front.

"When Ice Mirror Gardna is summoned using its effect, I can select one monster of my opponent's and Ice Mirror Gardna's DEF becomes equal to that monster's ATK." Alexis announced. "And since you only have Fortune Lady Dark on the field, Ice Mirror Garndna's DEF becomes 2000!"

The ice knight aimed its shield so that Dark's reflection appeared on the front. A second later, the knight glowed with a faint blue aura.

"That's the best you got, ice queen?" Dark scoffed. "By the time Carly starts her next turn, my level will go up by one and my ATK will go up to 2400. That ice sculpture of yours won't stand a chance."

"I set one card on the field and end my turn." Alexis announced.

As Carly drew her next card, Light reappeared and waved at Dark. "Hi sis!"

"Ugh. Did you really have to come back?" Dark scowled. "I don't need you getting in my way, twerp."

"You're so mean, Dark!" an offended Light pouted. "I'll have you know that I can fight just as well as you can!"

"As if!" Dark shot back. "Just shut up and leave the fighting to us big girls!"

"Now wait just a minute Dark!" Light protested.

"Will you two knock it off?" Carly cut in.

"Looks like those Fortune Ladies of yours have some issues." Alexis remarked. "With monsters like them, you don't have a chance in hell of beating me."

"There! See what you two did?" Carly told Dark and Light. "Now she thinks we're weak!"

"Light may be weak, but I'm not!" Dark declared.

"Hey!" Light protested.

"Dark, just shut up and attack Ice Mirror Gardna already!" Carly ordered.

"Fine by me." Dark grinned as she twirled her staff in the air above her head. "Dark Fate!"

With a swing of her staff, Dark sent a massive blade of purple energy at Ice Mirror Gardna. The ice knight was cut down the middle, and its two halves shattered into bits of light.

"Since Dark destroyed a monster, her effect lets me summon another Fortune Lady from my Graveyard." Carly announced. "Appear now, Fortune Lady Water!"

Materializing on the track was a young woman with blue skin and very long blue hair. Like her sisters, she had two batwings on the sides of her head and wore a blue version of the standard Fortune Lady outfit. A single red mark went across her face over the bridge of her nose. Shining on her forehead was a blue version of the eye symbol that the other Fortune Ladies had. In her hand, the young woman wielded her own bladed staff.

"Do I really have to take part in another brutish duel?" Water sighed.

"Yeah, I guess we wouldn't want out princess to break a nail." Dark sarcastically remarked.

"Anyway!" Carly loudly interrupted. "Since Water was summoned to the field, I can draw two more cards."

"This is the weirdest duel I've ever seen." Mokuba commented. "And I've seen some weird ones."

"Carly's Fortune Ladies may be a little odd, but they're real strong." Luna assured him.

"Yeah. From what we heard, they even gave Jack a hard time when he and Carly dueled." Leo added.

"I activate my Trap, Delay and Repeat!" Carly announced. "This card lets a Fortune Lady monster that destroyed a monster this turn attack again! Which means Dark can attack you directly!"

"Get ready to feel the pain, bitch!" Dark told Alexis as she twirled her staff for another attack. "Dark Fate!"

"I banish Ice Mirror Gardna from my Graveyard to activate the Continuous Trap, White Night Deep Freeze!" Alexis suddenly announced.

Suddenly a blizzard formed on the track and bombarded Carly and the three Fortune Lady sisters. By the time the blizzard cleared, all three Fortune Ladies had turned blue and stopped moving. Small icicles had formed on parts of their bodies. All three of them had shocked expressions on their faces.

"What the hell?" a surprised Carly asked.

"All my opponents monsters that are on the field when White Night Deep Freeze is activated can no longer attack or change battle positions." Alexis explained. "Not only that, Deep Freeze negates their effects. But don't worry. Deep Freeze destroys itself at the beginning of my third turn after being activated. After that, your Fortune Ladies will be thawed out. Of course they won't be around for that long."

"Damn!" Carly cursed. "Okay. I'll set two cards on the field and end my turn."

"This is real bad!" Luna declared. "Now that their effects have been negated, the ATK of all Carly's Fortune Ladies is zero."

"There still might be a way for Carly to turn things around." Jack told them. "If I'm right, one of the cards Carly just set on the field is Slip of Fortune. That card will let Carly block one of Alexis' attacks by sending one of her Fortune Ladies into the future."

"And if that happens, the Fortune Lady Carly sends into the Future will be thawed out." Leo realized.

"That's right." Jack nodded. "Plus if Slip of Fortune is used on Light, Carly can use her effect to summon Fortune Lady Fire from her deck and destroy Alexis' next monster plus burn her for damage."

"You seem to have a good grasp of your girlfriend's deck, Atlas." Kaiba noted. "But you seem to be forgetting one thing. Rhodes has been a step ahead of her this entire duel."

"What the hell do you mean?" Jack asked.

"Not only has Rhodes been able to get around the summoning effect of Future Visions by sticking to Special Summon monsters, she easily blocked Carly from even touching her life points." Kaiba explained. "I have a feeling this next turn won't go as your girlfriend hopes."

Alexis drew her next card. "I activate the Spell card, Polymerization! With this card, I fuse White Night Dragon with White Night Queen in my hand to summon White Night Dragon Queen!"

Suddenly the entire track was enveloped by a massive blizzard. When the storm finally subsides, hovering above Alexis was a massive four-legged dragon with gigantic wings and curved horns. The dragon had a slender build, and its entire body looked as though it had been carved in ice. Growing out of the top of the dragon's head was the top half of a woman with pale-blue skin, long jagged blue hair, and yellow eyes that seemed to lack pupils. The only thing she had on was a piece of white crystalline armor that covered her ample chest.

After the dragon had appeared, Carly glanced down at the track and noticed that a thick sheet of ice had covered the two cards she had set on the field. "Hey, what the…?"

"Because I summoned White Night Dragon Queen, you can't activate any set Spell or Trap cards until the start of your third turn after the summoning." Alexis explained. "Not only that, as long as White Night Dragon Queen is on the field, you can only activate one Spell card each turn."

"This is real bad!" Leo declared. "Now Carly's Traps are frozen solid. And that dragon queen has 3500 ATK!"

"White Night Dragon Queen, obliterate Fortune Lady Light!" Alexis commanded. "Eternal White Night!"

The dragon's mouth opened and blasted Light with a storm of ice and snow. Light's body shattered like glass when hit by the storm, the pieces becoming little more than dust. The wave of ice continued and struck Carly, nearly knocking her off the road. By the time the finally subsided, Carly was catching her breath. Her life points had dropped to a mere 500.

"One more hit like that, and she's toast." Mokuba observed.

"Looks like I was right." Kaiba remarked. "With the lead Rhodes has now, there's no way Carly can win. This duel will probably be over very soon."

* * *

**Author's Note:** Carly's duels have proven to be a little tricky to write. But what makes them fun is all the banter with the Fortune Ladies. The anime writers really missed an opportunity there. I also had a little difficulty figuring out what cards Alexis was going to use for this duel. In the end, I decided to go with an improved version of her White Night deck from the anime. I kind of like that deck a little better than her regular one.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	19. Hummingbird's Flame

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix.

* * *

Chapter 18: Hummingbird's Flame

"Seto, do you really think that Carly doesn't have a chance of turning things around?" a concerned Mokuba asked.

"It seems pretty obvious how this duel's going to end." Kaiba replied. "Atlas' little girlfriend was a fool to even challenge Rhodes in the first place."

"You better shut your trap, Kaiba!" Jack warned as he grabbed him by the collar of his shirt.

"Jack, take it easy!" Luna told him.

"You better get ready to eat your words, has been." Jack continued. "Carly's not about to be beaten by some puppet of the past."

"I end my turn." Alexis announced back in the duel. "If I were you, I'd just surrender now. You'll save yourself a lot of pain that way."

"There's no way in hell that I'm giving up!" Carly declared. "You don't realize it, but unless your boss Z-one is stopped, a lot of innocent people are going to be killed. And that's why I can't lose this duel!"

Suddenly the hummingbird mark on Carly's arm began to glow purple. At the same time, the top of Carly's deck started shinning with an orange light. The light from the card faded as soon as Carly drew it from the deck, revealing a card that Carly had not seen before. But of course she knew exactly how to use it.

"Since I have two Spellcasters on the field, I now Special Summon the Tuner, Spirit Cleanser Pixie Witch!" Carly announced.

Materializing on the track was a girl who looked to be about thirteen years old with short blue hair and emerald eyes. She had on a black conical hat with a wide orange band around it and a black cape with orange trim. In her right hand, the witch held an orange wand with a gold star on the top, and on her back were two pairs of transparent pink fairy-like wings.

"I now activate Pixie Witch's effect!" Carly announced. "By sending Fortune Lady Dark and Fortune Lady Water to the Graveyard, I can summon an Earthbound Immortal from my deck! Appear before us, Earthbound Immortal Aslla piscu!"

Both Dark and Water shattered to bits and a massive pillar of orange light burst up from the track into the air. The light soon faded to reveal a massive shadowy black hummingbird with orange lines on its body. Its eyes consisted of four orange dots.

"I tune the level two Pixie Witch into the level ten Aslla piscu for a level twelve Synchro Summon!" Carly announced.

With that, Pixie Witch transformed into two rings made of white light. The rings flew into the air and expanded to fit around Aslla piscu.

"A heavenly resonance reverberates through the sky! Its shining power casts away the darkness to bring new hope!" Carly chanted. "Synchro Summon! Take flight, Earthbound Guardian Aslla piscu!"

The rings shrank and went into Aslla piscu. The giant hummingbird then seemed to explode into a blinding flash of white light. When the light faded, Aslla piscu had turned white and her form had gained a more benevolent appearance. Her massive wings had even gained actual white feathers.

"Because I summoned Aslla piscu's guardian form, I gain 800 life points for each monster on the field." Carly announced. "Meaning I gain 1600 life points!"

Aslla piscu flapped her wings and showered Carly with specks of white light. The lights caused Carly's life points to rise to 2100.

"Not a bad monster." Alexis commented. "To bad that she won't be here for long, because now you've activated another of White Night Dragon Queen's effects! Once per turn, when my opponent summons a monster with 3000 or more ATK, white Night Dragon Queen destroys it!"

The dragon of ice opened her mouth and blasted Aslla piscu with an intense icy mist. The hummingbird's body became completely frozen in ice.

At this, Carly's lips curved into a smirk. "I was sort of hoping something like this would happen."

Massive cracks suddenly began to form in Aslla piscu's body. In a matter of moments the hummingbird exploded into another blinding flash of white light. When the light faded, there was no trace of either Aslla piscu or White Night Dragon Queen. The entire track had completely transformed as well. What was once a battlefield in a strange area of space had become a flat grey desert under a dark cloudy sky.

"What did you just do?" Alexis demanded to know.

"When Earthbound Guardian Aslla piscu leaves the field, she takes all the other cards on the field with her." Carly explained. "And since Future Visions was destroyed by my own card, I had to play another one from my deck. So I activated Domain of the Earthbound."

"Carly just turned things back around!" Leo excitedly observed.

"Not quite." Kaiba told him. "Neither of them has a clear advantage at the moment. If anything this is nothing more than a draw."

"There's not much else I can do right now. So I end my turn." Carly announced.

"You're going to pay for that little trick of yours!" Alexis declared as she drew her next card. "I summon White Night Sentinel in Attack Mode!"

Appearing on the track was a knight covered completely in armor made of white ice. Its right hand was a long shard of ice carved in the shape of a sword blade.

"White Night Sentinel, attack Carly directly!" Alexis commanded. "Bitter Cold Saber!"

The knight of ice charged at Carly as he raised his blade. But only half way towards her, the White Night Sentinel suddenly froze. A split second later he vanished like a mirage. In the exact same instant, Fortune Lady Dark reappeared on the field.

"What the…? What the hell did you do now?" Alexis demanded to know.

"You remember the Trap I played earlier, Delay and Repeat? Well it has another effect." Carly revealed. "If I'm attacked directly while Delay and Repeat is in the Graveyard, I can remove it from the Graveyard to send the attacking monster two of your turns into the future. Not only that, Delay and Repeat lets me summon a Fortune Lady from the Graveyard."

"And this time she summoned me!" Dark added. "You're gonna pay for freezing me and my sisters, you damn bitch! And for attacking Light!"

"Got any more moves, Lexie?" Carly taunted.

"Damn you!" Alexis cursed. "Fine, I'll end my turn. But on my next turn, you're going to pay!"

"I'm afraid that was your last turn." Carly told her as she drew her next card.

As Carly drew from her deck, white lights began to gather together in the sky above Carly. In moments the lights formed into Aslla piscu's guardian form.

"What the hell? How is that thing back?" a stunned Alexis asked.

"Oops. I forgot to mention that after Earthbound Guardian Aslla piscu's effect to destroy other cards on the field is used, she returns to field at the start of my next turn." Carly revealed. "Now then Dark, attack Alexis directly!"

"Eat this, bitch!" Dark cried as she twirled her bladed staff. "Dark Fate!"

With a swing of her staff, Dark sent a massive blade of purple energy at Alexis. The blade struck her and almost knocked her off the track. The attack had reduced Alexis' life points to 1600.

"Aslla piscu, attack Alexis directly and end this duel!" Carly commanded. "Sky Guardian Spear!"

The giant hummingbird thrust her beak down at Alexis and struck the ground by her D-Wheel. The attack brought Alexis' life points to zero and crated another explosion of light. When the light cleared, both of Carly's monsters had vanished and the track had changed back into the gear chamber that the duel had started in. The attack from Aslla piscu had knocked Alexis off of her D-Wheel. The former queen of Obelisk Blue slowly got to her feet.

Carly dismounted her D-Wheel and walked over as she put her glasses back on. "You okay Ms. Rhodes?"

"My head hurts, but I think so." Alexis replied. She then noticed where she was. "Oh god! Was I brainwashed again?"

"I'm afraid so." Carly confirmed. "Wait, you were brainwashed once before?"

"Oh, there was this weird cult that came to my academy once, and…" Alexis began. "Look, it's a long story. Do you mind telling me what's going on here?"

"That's a pretty long story too, I'm afraid." Carly replied.

"Carly." Jack called as he walked over, getting the spectacled reporter's attention. "You okay?"

"Yep." Carly cheerfully confirmed. "Sorry if I had you worried there."

"You did well." Jack told her.

"Enough of this!" Kaiba interrupted as he stormed over. "You can chat all you want after we take down Z-one!"

"Seto Kaiba's here to?" a confused Alexis observed. "And who's this Z-one you're talking about?"

"Hey look!" Leo interrupted as he pointed at a spot on the wall. "There's a door that just opened up."

Everyone looked at the spot where Leo was pointing. A square hatch had indeed opened up in the wall, revealing a new passageway.

"Looks like we go through there to get to Z-one." Jack deduced. "Let's go everyone!" And with that, everyone mounted their D-Wheels and went through the hatch.

* * *

Crow's team had finally reached the third gear. Sitting upon a white D-Wheel in the center of the chamber was Misty. Her eyes were closed as if she were in some sort of meditation.

"Who the heck is she?" Joey asked.

"Oh man, I knew this was looking too easy." Crow sighed. "I bet she's someone Z-one put in charge of guarding this place."

"But who is she though?" Raven wondered.

At this, Misty opened her eyes and looked at Crow and the others. "Welcome. I am Misty Lola, the guardian of this gear. I know why all of you have come, but I cannot allow you to stop Lord Z-one's plans. If you wish to shut down the gear, one of you must defeat me in a duel."

"We should've known something like this would happen." Jesse remarked.

"So which of us is going to duel her?" Crow asked.

"Leave it to me guys." Joey told them. "I'll take care of…"

Kiryu raised his arm to cut Joey off. "This one's mine."

"You sure Kiryu?" Crow asked.

"Trust me, it's better if I take care of her." Kiryu told them before driving into the chamber.

Misty looked Kiryu in the eyes as he drove up. "So you'll be my opponent. I should warn you though, it's safer if you don't face me in a duel."

"I'll take my chances." Kiryu told her. "Besides, I like living on the edge. You're Aki's friend from Pit, right?"

"So Aki told you about me." Misty observed. "My I ask what your name is."

"Kiryu Kyosuki." The silver haired duelist answered.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Kiryu." Misty replied. "It's a shame that this duel will have to end with your death."

* * *

**Author's Note:** Apologies for such a short chapter. Once again, I miscalculated the length of the duel. I've found that usually a duel that's seven to eight turns long can be broken into two chapters. But it sort of depends on how much action there is in each turn and other factors like character dialogue. Anyway, the next chapter we begin the epic duel between Kiryu and Misty. So stay tuned.

In the meantime, please review and let me know what you think.


	20. The Lizard Queen

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix.

* * *

Chapter 19: The Lizard Queen

Kiryu and Misty took their positions on the outer edge of the chamber. In moments the both took off on their D-Wheels. Misty took an early lead down the track. Kiryu on the other hand maintained his current speed. In moments, Misty had completed her lap around the chamber first, thus taking the first turn.

"Track Field, activate!" Misty called out. "Domain of the Earthbound!"

In moments the entire chamber changed into a vast flat grey desert landscape. The sky above was covered in thick dark clouds.

"This Field Spell… This is why Kiryu wanted to take on Misty! She has and Earthbound Immortal!" Raven realized. "I should've realized it sooner."

"Wait an Earthbound Immortal? You mean like that one monster Kiryu has?" Joey asked.

"Yeah, Carly has one too." Crow confirmed. "But the thing is, Carly and Kiryu can control their Immortals. This woman, Misty, may not have as good a handle on hers. In other words, she could go nuts at anytime."

"Hey guys? You remember that story Aki told us once about that friend of hers with an Earthbound Immortal that ate a guy?" an unsettled Sect recalled. "I think that's her!"

"This isn't looking good." Jesse declared. "But one thing I'd like to know is why Kiryu let Misty take the first turn."

Crow shrugged. "Who knows? Kiryu can be a little out there sometimes, but I'm sure he has some kind of plan."

Misty pulled up closer to Kiryu. "Why did you let me take the first turn?"

Kiryu merely looked at Misty with a calm expression. "Just make your move."

"Very well." Misty agreed as she drew her first card. "I summon Reptilianne Naga in Defense Mode!"

Appearing on the track by Misty was a young woman with blonde hair and pale white skin. The lower half of her body was the tail of a black snake, and growing out of the top of her head was the head of a black cobra. The serpent woman had on a black gothic style dress.

"That ends my turn." Misty announced.

Kiryu drew his first card. "I activate the Spell Card, Contract with the Void! By sending my entire hand to the Graveyard, I can summon an Infernity monster from one of those cards! Appear now, Infernity General!" His caped dark knight appeared on the track. "Infernity General, attack Reptilianne Naga! Infernity Blade!"

Infernity General charged in and swung his sword down hard at Naga. But before the blade could strike, the snake woman swiftly slithered out of the way. A split second later, Naga came up from behind Infernity General and bit the dark knight on the arm.

"What the heck was that?" Joey wondered. "That snake lady managed to dodge Kiryu's monster and land some kind of attack!"

"Reptilianne Naga can't be destroyed by battle." Misty explained. "Not only that, the ATK of any monster Naga battles drops to zero."

"I end my turn." Kiryu announced.

Misty drew her next card. "Since both Naga and Infernity General now have zero ATK, I can now summon one of my most powerful monsters! Appear now, Reptilianne Vaskii!"

Both Kiryu and Misty's monsters suddenly collapsed into piles of black sludge. The sludge gathered together and formed into a new shape. The new monster that formed was a woman with pale white skin and long red hair. She had two pairs of arms, and on each wrist was a golden bracelet. The lower half of her body was a black snake tail with brown stripes. She had on a blue short-sleeved dress with a lavender skirt, and atop her head was an ornate gold crown with a veil of blue fabric hanging down from the back and a purple cobra head on the front.

"Vaskii, attack Kiryu directly!" Misty commanded. "Venom of Malice!"

Vaskii opened her mouth and sprayed Kiryu with a stream of black liquid. Kiryu attempted blocking the attack with his arm but was stung by the venom. His life points dropped down to 1400.

"I set two cards on the field and end my turn!" Misty announced.

"You're pretty good." Kiryu commented.

"You say that, but I'm not certain you're taking me seriously." Misty told him. "You really should be if you truly value your life."

"Trust me, I am taking this seriously." Kiryu assured her. "I'm just trying to figure you out. From the moment my friends and I arrived, it seemed clear to me that you didn't want to be doing this."

"You're right, I don't." Misty admitted. "But I have my reasons. I have to do this."

"If you say so." Kiryu replied as he drew his next card. "I summon the Tuner monster, Infernity Sage!"

Appearing on the track was another knight in black armor wearing a purple cloak. In his right hand, the knight held a fan with green leaves.

"Because I have no cards in my hand, I banish Infernity General to summon Infernity Knight and Infernity Sheild Bearer from the Graveyard!" Kiryu announced. Two more of his black knights appeared on the battlefield. "I now tune the level two Infernity Sage into the level three Infernity Knight and the level three Infernity Shield Bearer for a level eight Synchro Summon!"

Infernity Sage waved his fan and transformed into two rings made of green light. The rings encircled the other two knights and transformed them into six white stars.

"Shadows of the underworld come together! Open now the gates of the abyss!" Kiryu chanted. "Synchro Summon! Rise from the pit, Void Ogre Dragon!"

The lights flashed and ignited into a pillar of crimson flames. The fire died down to reveal a winged dragon with large claws and crimson scales the color of dried blood. Adorning parts of its body were a few round blood-red stones.

"Void Ogre Dragon, attack Vaskii!" Kiryu commanded. "Hellfire Shot!"

"I activate my Trap, Mirror Force!" Misty announced.

"Then I activate Void Ogre Dragon's effect!" Kiryu quickly responded. "Since I have no cards in my hand, Void Ogre lets me negate the activation of a Spell or Trap card once per turn!"

The underworld dragon skewered Misty's Trap with the end of its tail. Afterwards it reared back its head and shot Vaskii with a stream of crimson flames. Misty's queen of serpents was set ablaze and burned into dust. Her life points dropped down to 3600.

"Man! Kiryu's style of dueling is pretty nuts." Joey commented. "I mean I know a lot of people think of me as a sort of gambler, but Kiryu depends on the luck of the draw each turn."

"That's a pretty big risk." Jesse agreed. "And since Kiryu's Infernity monsters need an empty hand for their effects to work, which means if he draws even one card he can't use, he's toast."

"That's Kiryu for ya. He's always been a little on the edge." Crow remarked. "But even so, he still manages to pull through. Just like he did with this last turn."

"I now activate my other Trap, Lizard God Offering!" Misty announced back in the duel. "Since a Reptile monster of mine was destroyed in battle, I can summon a Lizard Offering Token to the field!"

A large silver reptile egg appeared on the track by Misty. The egg hatched and from it emerged a grey lizard with five green horizontal stripes on its back.

"There's more." Misty continued. "In addition to summoning a Lizard Offering Token, Lizard God Offering lets me add an Earthbound Immortal to my hand."

"Oh no! It's coming!" Raven exclaimed. "Misty's about to summon her Earthbound Immortal!"

"Yeah, and I don't think there's anything Kiryu can do to stop it!" an equally worried Crow added.

"But Kiryu's dragon has 3000 ATK." Jesse pointed out. "Shouldn't that be enough to stand against one of these Immortals?"

"Attack points don't matter as far as Earthbound Immortals go." Raven informed him. "Earthbound Immortals can't be attacked by other monsters. But what's even worse is they can attack the opponent directly."

"And Kiryu doesn't have any Traps out or anything!" Joey suddenly realized. "Unless he does something now, this duel's all over!"

"I'd make some other move now if I were you." Misty suggested. "But then I suppose since you have no other cards in your hand, there's nothing else you can really do."

"You're right, I'm all out of moves." Kiryu confirmed. "I end my turn."

"Then it's time… this duel came to an end." Misty declared as she drew her next card. "Thanks to Domain of the Earthbound, I can summon an Earthbound Immortal with only one tribute! So I sacrifice my Lizard Offering Token to summon Earthbound Immortal Ccarayhua!"

Suddenly a purple mark in the shape of a lizard began to glow on Misty's right forearm. Kiryu and Crow's marks began to glow as well, as did the dragon seal on Raven's back. Misty's Lizard Token shattered apart and a massive pillar of green light shot up into the air. The light faded to reveal a massive giant black gecko the size of a skyscraper. The gecko had green markings on its body, as well as a large pair of ball-like green eyes.

"Oh man! That overgrown lizard makes even Yugi's god cards look tiny!" Joey exclaimed.

"How the hell is Kiryu supposed to survive an attack from that thing?" Jesse wondered.

"I'm not sure if he can." Raven replied.

Suddenly Misty began to chuckle and soon broke into a fit of psychotic laughter. "Oh, the moment has finally come! I'm sure the death of a man like you will be beautiful, just as beautiful as Divine's death was. It will be such joy for me to deliver that death to you!"

"There was a time when I would've welcomed my own death." Kiryu admitted. "I guess I couldn't ask for a more beautiful grim reaper."

"Then allow me to grant your wish!" Misty responded with mad glee. "Ccarayhua, attack Kiryu directly! Hell's Tongue Lash!"

Ccarayhua opened its mouth and shot its tongue down at Kiryu. The tongue struck the ground in front of Kiryu and enveloped him in dust and smoke.

"KIRYU!" a horrified Crow cried out.

"Oh man! This… this can't be real!" Joey denied.

Misty continued to laugh madly at her victory. But when the dust finally settled she stopped. Kiryu was somehow unharmed and his D-Wheel was still moving. Hovering alongside the silver-haired duelist was an unsettling humanoid monster wearing a tattered black cowboy hat and poncho. A red bandanna covered the lower half of his face. The part of the monster's face that was showing had pale white skin and demonic red eyes.

"What the…? How did Kiryu survive?" Raven wondered.

"And what's with that creepy monster?" Sect asked.

"You… you blocked my attack?" a stunned Misty exclaimed. "How? There's no way you could've stopped Ccarayhua!"

"You're right, my life points are at zero." Kiryu revealed. "But when a direct attack brings my life points to zero while I have no cards in my hand, I can summon Infernity Wraith from my Graveyard! And as long as Infernity Wraith is on the field, I can't lose even if my life points are at zero!"

"So… so that vile card let's you cheat death?" Misty realized. "You… you liar! You fiend! You said that you welcomed your death!"

"Like I said, there was a time when I welcomed my death. But I have to much to live and fight for to die now!" Kiryu declared. "And I'm going to come back from the brink of death to win this duel!"

* * *

**Author's Note:** I don't know what it is about these recent chapters that makes them so short. Seems I miscalculated yet again somehow. Anyway, the duel between Misty and Kiryu ended up coming together pretty quickly. I ended up creating a new card for Kiryu though, Infernity Wraith. Originally I had planned to use Infernity Zero from the anime, but after refreshing my memory of the card I found that it only worked with effect damage. So I made up this new card with a similar effect.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	21. Suicide Duelists

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix.

* * *

Chapter 20: Suicide Duelists

"Infernity Wraith gains a Specter Counter every time I take damage." Kiryu revealed. "And once he has three Specter Counters on him, Infernity Wraith is destroyed. When that happens, I really will lose the duel."

"I see. So I only have to hit you three more times." Misty observed as her face twisted back into a psychotic grin. "How wonderful. Your suffering will make your death all the more beautiful. I'll end my turn here so you can prepare yourself for the end."

Kiryu drew his next card. "I now activate a Spell card, Underworld Exchange Synchro! By sending Void Ogre Dragon to the Graveyard, I can summon another Dragon-type Synchro monster from my Extra Deck that's the same attribute and level! Appear now, Hundred Eyes Dragon!"

Kiryu's blood red dragon became enveloped in a pillar of purple flames. The flames soon subsided to reveal Kiryu's other eye-covered dragon.

"I now activate Hundred Eyes Dragon's effect!" Kiryu announced. "By banishing a Fiend-type monster from my Graveyard, Hundred Eyes gains that monster's effects until the end of the turn. And the monster I'm banishing is my Infernity Archer!"

The ghostly form of a large knight clad in black armor, wielding a large bow and arrow appeared on the track. The dark knight flew into the large central eye on Hundred Eyes Dragon's chest.

"Now because I have no cards in my hand, the effect of Infernity Archer allows Hundred Eyes Dragon to attack directly!" Kiryu announced. "Hundred Eyes Dragon! Hit Misty with Infinity Sight Stream!"

The dragon reared back its head and fired a stream of purple flames at Misty. The dark-haired woman cried out as her life points dropped down to 600.

Once again, Misty broke into psychotic laughter. "How wonderful! I'm now so close to the brink of death! I only wish that your dragon were stronger. Then I really could've died."

"So my hunch was right. You're helping Z-one so you can die!" Kiryu realized. "You've been hoping that my friends and I would have to duel you so we can stop Z-one and that the duel would kill you."

"I deserve to die!" Misty continued with a mad grin. "I deserve to die because I killed Divine. I was in love with him you know. But he was only using me. He used my younger brother too and ended up killing him. That's why he deserved to die! And I deserve to die because I killed him! It all makes perfect sense, you see?"

"Yeah, I see alright." Kiryu replied. "You're feeling guilt over killing that man. Trust me, I know what that feels like."

"Hey Crow, what's Kiryu talking about?" Joey asked on the sidelines.

"Kiryu… killed a security officer a long time ago." Crow hesitantly explained. "But he was a different guy back then. Hell, the whole city was different. Back then, Kiryu, Yusei, Jack, and I were all in a Duel Gang in Satellite. We ended up beating all the other gangs. But after that, Kiryu went over the top and tried taking on Security. That's when it happened."

"Man. I guess that explains why Kiryu seems kind of on the edge." Joey remarked.

"I know what it's like to carry around that kind of guilt." Kiryu continued. "It's hard to live with yourself after doing something like that. But even someone like you just shouldn't throw your life away!"

"Shut up!" Misty shot back. "How could you begin to understand how I feel? Now if you're done, please kindly end your turn!"

"…Okay, I'll end my turn there." Kiryu agreed. "And with the end of my turn, the effect of Underworld Exchange Synchro destroys Hundred Eyes Dragon!" The underworld dragon exploded in a flash of purple flames. "When Hundred Eyes Dragon is destroyed, I can add an Earthbound Immortal to my hand. Now then, make your move."

Misty chuckled with mad glee as she drew her next card. "Earthbound Immortal Ccarayhua, attack Kiryu directly! Devil's Tongue Lash!"

The giant gecko launched its tongue down at Kiryu, creating a massive cloud of dust upon hitting the ground near him. After a moment, Kiryu emerged from the dust cloud unharmed with Infernity Wraith. A ball of unearthly blue fire was floating by the wraith's right side.

Misty broke into another fit of laughter. "I activate a Quick-Play Spell from my hand, Earthbound Rampage! By giving up half my life points and sending every other card in my hand to the Graveyard, Ccarayhua can attack again this turn! Ccarayhua, strike Kiryu with another Devil's Tongue Lash!"

Misty's gecko launched its tongue down at Kiryu a second time, kicking up another massive cloud of dust. This time when Kiryu emerged, a second blue fireball had appeared by the left side of Infernity Wraith.

"Kiryu's wraith already has two of those counters on it!" a worried Jesse observed. "If he gets hit with any more damage, he's done for!"

"I'm afraid I have to end my turn there." Misty announced. "But on my next turn, I'll bring this duel to an end with your death!"

"You won't get the chance!" Kiryu declared. "I'm not going to lose this duel! And I'm sure as hell not going to let you throw your life away!"

Suddenly the owl man mark on Kiryu's arm began to glow. At the same time, the top card of his deck began to shine with a blue light.

Kiryu drew the card from his deck. "I summon Spirit Cleanser Fiend Exorcist!" The small robed demon appeared on the track. "With Fiend Exorcist's effect, I summon an Earthbound Immortal from my hand! Rise up, Earthbound Immortal Ccapac Apu!"

A massive pillar of blue light shot up from the ground into the sky. In moments the light faded to reveal Kiryu's shadowy giant.

"I tune the level two Fiend Exorcist into the level ten Ccapac Apu for a level twelve Synchro Summon!" Kiryu announced.

Fiend Exorcist transformed into two rings made of white light. The rings went up into the sky and enlarged to encircle Ccapac Apu.

"A holy resonance reverberates through the land! Its power casts away the darkness to reveal the light within!" Kiryu chanted. "Synchro Summon! Reveal yourself, Earthbound Guardian Ccapac Apu!"

The rings of light shrank and went into Ccapac Apu's body, creating an explosion of white light. Moments later the light faded to reveal the giant in its white guardian form.

"I activate Earthbound Guaridan Ccapac Apu's effect!" Kiryu announced. "Until the end of the turn, Ccapac Apu can negate the effects of one of my opponent's monsters! And of course the monster I choose to use this on is Ccarayhua!"

Blue lights flew from the gecko's body into Ccapac Apu's eye. As this happened, the green parts of Ccarayhua's body turned grey.

"In addition to negating Ccarayhua's effects, Ccapac Apu also gains half its ATK." Kiryu revealed. "Which means his ATK is now 4900!"

"And because that big lizard's lost its effects, Kiryu can attack it!" Joey excitedly realized.

"Ccapac Apu, attack Ccarayhua and end this duel!" Kiryu commanded. "Guardian Fist!"

The giant raised his fist and struck Ccarayhua in the chest. The shadowy gecko exploded in a blinding flash of white light that enveloped the entire area. Misty screamed as her remaining 300 life points dropped down zero. When the light finally died down, the monsters had vanished and the entire group was back inside the gear chamber that the duel had started in. The wall of the chamber had stopped rotating and a hidden square hatch had opened up. Misty meanwhile was on the ground by her toppled D-Wheel.

Kiryu quickly dismounted his D-Wheel and went over to her. "Are you okay?"

Misty slowly got to her feet as she held the back of her head. "I think so. Though… I don't know why I am. You should've killed me in that duel."

"I never wanted you dead." Kiryu told her. "I've got enough blood on my hands already."

"Oh… I see. Then I suppose it was unfair of me to expect you to deliver my death." Misty realized. "I'm truly sorry I caused you so much trouble."

"I'd like very much to help you Misty." Kiryu offered. "I've been where you are, and I can help you through it."

"I'm surprised that there'd be someone who'd worry about me so much." Misty replied.

"Hey, you're the first person in a long time who can satisfy me." Kiryu smirked.

"Uh, s-satisfy you?" Misty repeated with a blush.

"Oh, I mean as an opponent!" Kiryu frantically explained as his own face turned red. "Of course you are pretty hot, I mean…"

"Hey Kiryu! You wanna save the flirting for later?" Crow impatiently interrupted. "We've got a city to save, ya know!"

"Uh, coming!" Kiryu quickly assured him before turning back to Misty. "Won't you come with us?"

"…Okay." Misty finally agreed. "I guess... maybe I have more to live for than I thought after all." And with that, the entire group rode into the hatch.

* * *

Yusei's team had finally emerged from the narrow corridor that went out from the first gear chamber. They had arrived inside a much larger round chamber with a massive domed ceiling. Scattered around chamber were piles of junk and debris, as well as a few large slabs of stone depicting different monsters.

"So is this the main gear chamber?" Jaden wondered as he and the others dismounted.

"Uncertain. But I think it's the most logical conclusion." Bruno answered.

"These stone slabs look like the ones that inspired Duel Monsters." Yugi noticed as he looked around.

"Most of the monsters on the slab look like Synchro monsters." Yusei observed.

"Hey Yusei?" Aki interrupted.

"What's up?" Yusei replied.

"Well, I know you'll probably end up dueling Z-one before long. So I want to lend you these." Aki replied as she handed Yusei three cards.

Yusei's eyes widened a bit when he saw what the cards were. "Are you sure?"

Aki nodded. "You'll probably need all the help you can get. Besides, this way I can feel like I'm fighting alongside you."

Yusei smiled and took the cards. "Don't worry. I'll have these back to you when I'm done."

At that moment, Jack's team finally arrived on the scene. Alexis quickly parked her D-Wheel and ran over to the others. "Jaden!"

"Alexis?" Jaden responded before running over to meet Alexis half way. "You okay? What happened?"

"I'm fine." Alexis assured him. "I was brainwashed into guarding some gear."

"I'm the one who snapped her out of it." Carly chimed in. "So Jaden, are you going to thank me for saving your girlfriend?"

"G-Girlfriend?" Jaden repeated as his face turned bright red.

"Whoa, whoa! Back up!" Alexis frantically cut in as her face also turned red. "Jaden and I are not a couple."

"Really?" a surprised Carly asked with a tilt of her head. "Could've fooled me. Especially after the way Jaden came all the way from the past to save you."

"Yeah, I thought you guys were a real item." Tea chimed in.

"Same here." Aki agreed.

Both Jaden and Alexis had a deep blush on their faces. Yubel meanwhile had appeared next to Jaden in spirit form and was grinding her teeth. A moment later, Crow's team finally arrived.

"Well, looks like we all made it." Crow observed as he and the others dismounted.

"Yes. But the question now is, where is Z-one?" Yugi wondered.

"Ask and you shall receive, Pharaoh." A deep booming voice spoke from above. Everyone looked up to see Z-one coming down through a hole in the center of the ceiling.

"This ends now Z-one!" Yusei declared.

"You are all fools to oppose me." Z-one told them. "I'm doing what needs to be done to change the future and save the human race from ruin."

"There's another way to do that besides killing so many innocent people!" Yusei argued. "And whatever that way is, we'll find it!"

"To think that I was ever that naive." Z-one remarked.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Yusei asked as he narrowed his eyes.

"Never mind." Z-one responded. "The power source of the central gear is linked to my very heart. In order to shut that source down, one of you must defeat me in a duel."

"Then I'll take you on!" Yusei declared.

"Count me in too!" Jaden cut in. "I want to get back at you for what you put me, Alexis, and Jesse through!"

"I will duel you as well!" Yugi declared. "The three of us will take you down together!"

"A duel with the Nameless Pharaoh, the Supreme King, and the leader of the Signers. How interesting." Z-one commented. "Very well. The three of you may face me all at once. But I warn you, this duel can only end with your demise."

* * *

**Author's Note:** One regret I have about this trilogy is not really giving myself the opportunity to really develop the relationship between Kiryu and Misty. If I had been thinking back then, maybe I would've written _Stardust and Roses_ so that Misty had escaped the Pit with Yusei and the others. But then I would've needed to come up with someone else to guard the third gear chamber. I plan to do a bonus story featuring Misty and Kiryu at some point. In the meantime ladies and gentlemen, the time has come to prepare yourselves for the main event!

Three duelist kings! One twisted cyborg from the future! The final battle to decide the fate of Neo Domino is about to begin!

In the meantime, please review and let me know what you think.


	22. Three Kings

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix.

* * *

Chapter 21: Three Kings

"This duel will use the same rules as a tag team match." Z-one decided. "But because this match is three against one, both sides shall start with a total of 12000 life points."

"Fine by us." Yusei agreed.

"Then let us begin." Z-one told them.

Suddenly a large pair of white mechanical arms came down from the opening in the ceiling that Z-one had come through and attached to the white cyborg. Accompanying the arms was a floating white device that looked like a giant deck holder. The deck in question appeared to be composed of large stone slabs. Yusei, Yugi, and Jaden mounted their D-Wheels and revved them up. As soon as they did, two beams of red light shot from the front of Yusei's D-Wheel and went into Yugi and Jaden's.

"What the heck was that?" Jaden wondered.

"Aporia." Yusei answered. "Looks like he wants all three of us to take down Z-one."

"Then let's not disappoint him." Yugi decided.

"Be careful, you guys!" Tea told them.

With that, the three duelist kings started their vehicles and wings of red energy came out from the front wheels of each cycle. All three of them suddenly took off into the air. Z-one and his three opponents then began to circle a lap around the wall of the chamber. All four seemed to keep an even pace, but at the last moment Z-one's speed drastically increased. The cyborg completed the lap in a matter of seconds.

"As I have completed the first lap, I have the first turn." Z-one announced. "Yugi Muto shall have the second turn, followed by Jaden Yuki."

"Which means I go last." Yusei realized.

"Track Field, activate! Time's End Cemetery!" Z-one announced.

The entire inside of the chamber changed drastically into an endless expanse of white light. The spectators of the duel stood upon a large silver disk that seemed to float in the air. On either side of the arena were massive walls lined with metal cylinders that both seemed to stretch out into infinity.

"What sort of Field Spell is this?" Yugi wondered.

"This is the graveyard that exists at the end of time." Z-one explained. "The capsules you see lining these walls are the coffins of those who were unfortunate to have lived long enough to see the end of all things."

"Could you have picked a more morbid battlefield?" Jaden remarked.

"I summon Time's End Speeder in Attack Mode!" Z-one announced.

Appearing on the track by Z-one was a warrior with a body covered in white and silver armor, along with long mechanical arms and legs. In place of feet it had black wheels, and mounted on its back was a pair of rocket boosters. On its face it had on a mask with red lenses and a tube that extended from the mouth down to the chest.

"I now tribute Time's End Speeder to activate its effect and inflict 900 points of damage." Z-one announced.

The rocket boosters on the back of Time's End Speeder ignited and the mechanical warrior took off. Time's End Speeder collided into the front of Yusei's D-Wheel and exploded in a flash of fire and smoke. The life points of the duelist kings took a slight dive to 11100.

"I set a card on the field and end my turn." Z-one announced.

"Then it's my move!" Yugi declared as he drew his first card. "First I play a card face down on the field. Then I summon Big Shield Gardna in Defense Mode!"

Appearing on the track in a kneeling position was a muscular warrior with tan skin and long black hair that went down to his waist. In front of himself, the warrior held a giant purple shield with gold trim.

"That ends my turn." Yugi announced.

"Which means I'm up!" Jaden announced as he drew his first card. "I activate Polymerization and fuse Elemental Hero Clayman with Elemental Hero Burstinatrix in my hand to summon Elemental Hero Rampart Blaster in Defense Mode!"

A vortex appeared in the air above Jaden. Dropping down out of it with a thud was a woman with grey skin covered in darker grey stone-like armor. One of her arms ended in a shield while the other arm ended in a laser cannon.

"Why the duce are they summoning all these wall monsters?" Jack wondered. "Z-one is wide open!"

"They're probably being cautious of Z-one face down card." Bruno assumed. "Keep in mind, Z-one sacrificed the only monster he could summon that turn. He wouldn't have done that if he didn't have a good defense set up."

"I'll lay down a face down and end my turn!" Jaden announced.

Yusei drew his first card. "I summon the Tuner monster, Junk Changer!"

Appearing by Yusei was a black and silver robot with a barrel-like torso. On the front of the torso was a large round red light.

"Now I activate my face down card, De-Fusion!" Jaden announced. "With this card, I split Rampart Blaster back into Burstinatrix and Clayman!"

Rampart Blaster split back into her two original forms. One form was that of a woman with grey skin and long dark-grey hair wearing a red flame-like garment that fit tightly to her body and a golden hat with a green gem in front. The other form was that of a warrior in the same stone-like armor worn by Rampart Blaster.

"I tune my level three Junk Changer into Jaden's level three Burstinatrix for a level six Synchro Summon!" Yusei announced.

Junk Changer clanked its fists together before changing into three rings made of green light. The rings encircled around Jaden's fire hero and transformed her into three white stars.

"Clustering stars come together to signal the arrival of an unstoppable fighter! Create the path its light shines upon!" Yusei chanted. "Synchro Summon! Rise up! Mighty Warrior!"

The lights flashed into a column of white energy. The energy soon subsided to reveal Yusei's cybernetic warrior.

"So Jaden summoned Rampart Blaster just so he could split it apart and give Yusei material for his monster?" Alexis realized. "Amazing!"

"Mighty Warrior, attack Z-one directly!" Yusei commanded. "Mighty Knuckle!"

"I activate my Trap!" Z-one suddenly announced. "Scrap-Iron Scarecrow!"

Before Mighty Warrior could land a blow on Z-one, a familiar scarecrow of junk appeared in front of the cyborg god. The scarecrow blocked the warrior's mechanical fist with a transparent barrier of light and was knocked back.

Yusei was visibly shocked by what had just happened. "What the…?"

"What the hell? Scrap-Iron Scarecrow?" an equally surprised Crow exclaimed.

"So Z-one blocked one attack. No big deal." Jesse replied.

"Yeah, they'll just get him on the next turn." Joey agreed.

"You guys don't get it. Scrap-Iron Scarecrow is one of Yusei's signature cards." Crow informed them. "He's used that card ever since he could pick up a deck."

"It is weird to see Z-one using the same Trap as Yusei." Carly admitted. "But hey, Scrap-Iron Scarecrow is a pretty common card. It's probably just some odd coincidence."

"Are you done?" Z-one asked Yusei.

Yusei quickly regained his composure. "I end my turn."

Z-one drew his next card. "I summon the Tuner monster, Time's End Mechanic!"

Appearing on the track was a short white and silver robot with large red eyes and an almost human shape. Its right arm ended in a strange mechanical tool, and on its back was something that looked like an engine.

"When Time's End Mechanic is summoned to the field, I can summon another Time's End monster from my Graveyard." Z-one announced. "I choose to resurrect Time's End Speeder." The mechanical speed warrior reappeared on the track through a portal of dark energy. "I tune the level three Time's End Mechanic into the level two Time's End Speeder for a level five Synchro Summon!"

The engine on the back of the mechanic started up, and in moments the small robot changed into three rings of green light. The rings encircled Time's End Speeder and changed the cyborg warrior into two white stars.

"Clustering stars come together to signal the arrival of time's assassin! Create the path of broken dreams!" Z-one chanted. "Synchro Summon! Appear now, Time's End Hunter!"

The lights flashed and became a column of blue energy. In moments the energy faded to reveal a larger warrior clad completely in white and black armor. Mounted on its back was a jetpack with wings, and its face was covered by a mask with red lenses and a tube that extended from where the mouth would be to the chest. Its right forearm was a large laser cannon with a long barrel that narrowed towards the end.

"He played a monster with 2300 DEF in Attack Mode?" a surprised Jaden noticed.

"And it only has 100 ATK!" Yusei noticed.

"It must have a powerful ability." Yugi assumed.

"Correct, Pharaoh." Z-one confirmed. "When Time's End Hunter attacks a monster, it gains that monster's ATK during the battle."

"Meaning its always a hundred points stronger than whatever it's fighting." Yusei realized.

"Time's End Hunter, attack Mighty Warrior!" Z-one commanded. "Temporal Sniper!"

"I activate a Trap, Shift!" Yugi quickly announced. "This card lets me redirect an opponent's attack or card effect to another monster on my side of the field. So I change the target of your hunter's attack to my Big Shield Gardna!"

Time's End Hunter fired a blue beam from its laser at Yusei's monster. But before the attack could hit, Big Shield Gardna jumped in front of the beam and blocked it. The beam split and ricocheted back, hitting Z-one. The cyborg god's life points dropped to 9600.

"Your Time's End Hunter only gains the ATK of the monster it battles, but doesn't gain any of its DEF." Yugi smugly pointed out. "My Big Shield Gardna only has 100 ATK, not nearly enough for your hunter to overcome its 2600 DEF."

"Impressive." Z-one praised. "Your legend is well earned. I shall set two cards on the field and my turn."

Yugi drew his next card. "I sacrifice Big Shield Gardna to summon Dark Magician Girl!"

Big Shield Gardna shattered to bits of golden light. In his place appeared a young woman with blonde hair and fair skin, wearing a blue curved conical hat with pink trim and a sleeveless blue outfit with a short pink skirt. She also had on a pair of blue boots, and in her hand she carried a short pink and gold wand.

"Now I activate a Spell card, Sage's Stone!" Yugi announced. "With this card I summon the strongest magician from my deck. Come forth, Dark Magician!"

Appearing on the track by Yugi's Spellcaster was a man wearing a purple curved conical hat with purple armor and robes. In his hand, he carried a long green staff with a green gem on top.

"Dark Magician Girl, attack Time's End Hunter!" Yugi commanded. "Dark Burning Attack!"

"I activate my Trap, Scrap-Iron Scarecrow!" Z-one announced.

Dark Magician Girl twirled around and fired a ball of pink energy from her wand at Time's End Hunter. But before it could hit, Z-one's Scarecrow of junk appeared and blocked that attack with a barrier of light.

"Scrap-Iron Scarecrow is a powerful card." Yugi complimented. "Too bad you can only use it once per turn. Dark Magician, destroy Time's End Hunter! Dark Magic Attack!"

Dark Magician fired bolts of black energy from the end of his staff that struck Time's End Hunter. But before shattering apart, Z-one's cybernetic hunter fired a sphere of black energy from its cannon. The sphere expanded and engulfed Dark Magician Girl before vanishing.

"What happened?" a surprised Yugi asked.

"When Time's End Hunter is destroyed in battle, it sends an opponent's monster straight to the Graveyard." Z-one explained. "Dark Magician's apprentice has been catapulted to the end of time."

"Wait a sec. Something's not right." Kiryu realized. "If Z-one had used Time's End Hunter's effect on Yusei's Mighty Warrior, Yugi would've had to end his turn since he could no longer attack. What's Z-one up to?"

"I still have one attack left!" Yugi continued. "Mighty Warrior, attack Z-one directly! Mighty Warrior!"

Mighty Warrior changed in and struck the front of Z-one's body with his mechanical fist. The strike brought Z-one's life points down to 5000.

"I activate a Trap, Shock Draw!" Z-one announced. "Since I've taken 4000 points of damage this turn, I can draw four more cards from my deck."

"What the… Shock Draw?" a stunned Yusei uttered.

"First Scrap-Iron Scarecrow and now Shock Draw?" Crow exclaimed. "How many if Yusei's cards does Z-one have?"

"I'm sure it's just another weird coincidence." Carly assumed.

"I'm not so sure." Raven spoke. "Something doesn't seem right here. Did you guys notice how Z-one's chant to summon Time's End Hunter started out kind of like the chants Yusei uses to summon a lot of his Synchro monsters?"

"Come to think of it, Paradox said that his Stardust Dragon card came from Z-one." Joey recalled.

"Guys, you might not want to here this, but Leo, Luna, and I all noticed something about that machine that seems to be Z-one's body." Mokuba cut in. "It looks like parts of it were made from Yusei's D-Wheel."

"You're all being foolish!" Kiaba told them. "Z-one is simply trying to throw Fudo off his game somehow."

"I wouldn't be so sure, Mr. Kaiba." Misty spoke. "Z-one has already admitted to me and Sherry that his actions have already altered history. When I think about what Z-one's said about his own past and what we've all just noticed, it might just be possible that…"

"Stop it right now! All of you!" Aki interrupted, almost shouting. "I don't want to hear any more about this!"

"Fudo, Z-one has a statue of you." Sherry informed her.

"He… what?" a stunned Aki responded.

"Sherry, I don't think…" Misty began.

"Look, we're all thinking the same damn thing! So we might as well get it all out in the open!" Sherry told her. She turned back to Aki. "Misty found the statue one time when she got lost on this floating rock. We ended up asking Paradox about it, and he told us that the statue was of the only woman Z-one ever loved."

"But… how can that be?" Aki wondered.

"I get the feeling we'll find out soon enough." Sherry replied.

"I end my turn." Yugi announced.

Jaden drew his next card. "I activate Mystical Space Typhoon and destroy Scrap-Iron Scarecrow!" A small twister that appeared on the track destroyed the large Trap card. "Next I play the Spell card, Ancient Rules! With this card I can summon a level five or higher Normal monster from my hand. Say hello to Elemental Hero Neos!"

Appearing on the track was a warrior in a white alien-looking bodysuit. Parts of the suit were dark-blue and his hands were black. A red line ran over parts of the warrior's body, and in the center of his chest was a dark-blue gemstone. Three red triangles surrounded the stone, with the points facing away from it. There were white spikes on the warrior's elbows that curved upward, with another large white spike that curved backward grew from the top of the warrior's head.

"Neos, attack Z-one directly!" Jaden commanded. "Wrath of Neos!"

"I activate a Trap, Time Freeze!" Z-one suddenly announced. Just as Neos began to charge in, he suddenly seemed to become frozen in time. "With this card, all my opponent's special summoned monsters cannot attack until the start of my next turn."

"Crud!" Jaden cursed. "Guess I have to end my turn."

Yusei drew his next card. He was still thrown by Z-one using both Scrap-Iron Scarecrow and Shock Draw, cards he had used on a regular basis. Of course he knew that they were common enough cards, but he couldn't help but think about the times he had been told that he and Z-one were alike. It was making it hard to concentrate on the duel, but he tried pushing those thoughts out of his head.

"I set one card on the field and end my turn." Yusei announced. With the end of the turn, Neos and the other monsters on the battlefield were unfrozen.

Z-one drew his next card. "I summon the Tuner monster, Time's End Probe!"

Appearing on the track was a relatively small round flying robot with a single green lens for an eye. Projecting from its back was a single rocket booster, and on the front of its body was a pair of small mechanical arms, each arm ending in a hand with two fingers and a thumb.

"I now activate the effect of Time's End Cemetery." Z-one announced. "Since I have a Time's End monster on the field, I can summon a monster from any of our Graveyards."

One of the metal cylinders that made up the right wall of the strange battlefield flew out and hovered over to Z-one's side. The cylinder tilted until it was vertical, revealing a square window near the top. Inside the window, Yusei and the others could see an unconscious and very familiar monster.

"Dark Magician Girl?" a surprised Yugi identified.

"Yes, Pharaoh." Z-one confirmed. "But as she is now, Dark Magician Girl is only a corpse with zero ATK and no effect. I shall change that, however. I tune the level one Time's End Probe into the level six Dark Magician Girl for a level seven Synchro Summon!"

Z-one's probe changed into a ring of blue-green light. The ring went down the length of Dark Magician Girl's coffin, removing it from the track. The ring went up the length of Dark Magician Girl's body and replaced her outfit with a form-fitting silver bodysuit with circuit paths running through it. In the process, her skin had turned chalk white and her hair had become dark blue. The ring went down again, this time placing white armor on the magician girl's torso and shoulders, also adding a short black skirt around her waist. The ring of light went up again, this time placing white boots with black trim on her feet and a white glove on her right arm, while a mechanical arm that ended with a claw replaced her left arm. The ring went back down yet again, this time adding a silver-colored curved conical hat with black trim and replacing her right eye with a cybernetic implant. Appearing in her right hand was a black wand with a round blue gem on top.

"Clustering stars come together to signal the revival of time's great magician! Create the path of broken dreams!" Z-one chanted as the ring of light did its work. "Synchro Summon! Arise, Time's End Sorceress!"

The ring vanished and the lens of the magician girl's cybernetic eye began to glow red. She soon opened her remaining human eye, revealing it to be grey and soulless.

"Dark Magician Girl has now been resurrected as a machine that obeys my will." Z-one informed them.

"Even so, your Sorceress only has 2200 ATK." Yugi pointed out. "She's not strong enough to take on my Dark Magician or Jaden's Neos."

"Or so you would think." Z-one replied. "Time's End Sorceress, attack Dark Magician! Spell of Entropy!"

Time's End Sorceress raised her right arm forward and fired a ball of blue light from her wand. The ball neared Dark Magician and suddenly reduced the more powerful Spellcaster to dust. The blast continued and struck Yugi. The life points of the three duelist kings dropped to 8900.

"What just happened?" Yugi wondered.

"My sorceress' Spell of Entropy reduces the ATK of an enemy monster she's attacking to zero." Z-one explained.

"I activate a Trap, Shock Draw!" Yusei announced. "Since we just took 2000 points of damage this turn, I can draw two more cards!"

"I set two cards on the field and end my turn." Z-one announced.

Yugi drew his next card. "I place on card face down and end my turn."

Jaden drew his next card. "I activate Pot of Greed and draw two more cards from my deck!" After drawing his two cards, Jaden smirked. "I activate Polymerization and fuse Clayman with Elemental Hero Sparkman from my hand to summon Elemental Hero Thunder Giant!"

Appearing on the track was another warrior in a gold and blue costume. Sparkman and Clayman dashed into a vortex that had appeared on the field. Emerging from it was a giant in a purple costume with brown and white armor. But as soon as Jaden's new hero appeared, Time's End Sorceress fired a ray of blue light from her wand. The giant was struck and split back into Clayman and Sparkman.

"Hey! What gives?" Jaden protested.

"I activated the effect of Time's End Sorceress." Z-one explained. "During either player's turn, I can use Time's End Sorceress to banish a Spell card from any of our Graveyards and use its effect for myself. And the card I just used was your De-Fusion."

"Yeah? Well that just means I have more monsters to attack you with!" Jaden told him.

"Don't be so sure." Z-one replied. "I activate a Trap, Timeline Breaker! With this card, all monsters that have been special summoned this turn are destroyed."

Both Clayman and Sparkman suddenly began to ripple and change color. In seconds, both monsters exploded and shattered to bits.

"Neos, attack Time's End Sorceress!" a frustrated Jaden commanded. "Wrath of Neos!"

"Jaden, wait!" Yugi called out.

Neos leapt into the air to deliver a devastating punch Time's End Sorceress. But as the space hero came near, his body began to turn grey and stone-like. Time's End Sorceress fired another ball of blue light from her wand that caused Neos to shatter to dust. The life points of the three kings dropped again to 6700.

"What the…?" a confused Jaden exclaimed.

"I activated another Trap, Entropy Barrier." Z-one explained. "During this turn, all monsters that attack a Time's End monster have their ATK points reduced to zero."

"I end my turn." Jaden announced as he rubbed the back of his head. "Looks like really screwed up. Sorry guys."

"Don't worry, I'll take care of this." Yusei assured them as he drew his next card. "I summon a Tuner monster, Screwturn the Apprentice Warrior!"

Appearing on the track was a small humanoid robot with a large upturned screw for a head. In its hand it held a long narrow screw as a sword.

"I tune the level two Screwturn into the level six Mighty Warrior for a level eight Synchro Summon!" Yusei announced.

Screwturn flashed orange and changed into two rings of green light. The rings encircled Mighty Warrior and changed the cyborg fighter into six white stars.

"Clustering hopes will become a new shining star! Become the path its light shines upon!" Yusei chanted. "Synchro Summon! Take flight, Stardust Dragon!"

The lights flashed into a column of white energy. The energy faded and Yusei's silvery-white dragon emerged with a roar. Bits of stardust showered the field with each beat of the dragon's massive wings.

"I equip Stardust with Junk Barrage!" Yusei announced. The dragon began to glow with a green aura. "Stardust Dragon, attack Time's End Sorceress! Shooting Sonic!"

Stardust Dragon reared back his head and blasted Time's End Sorceress with a ray of sparkling sonic waves. The cyborg magician girl exploded in a flash of fire and smoke. Z-one's life points dropped to 4700.

"And now, Junk Barrage deals damage equal to half of Time's End Sorceress' ATK!" Yusei continued.

Bits of flaming debris suddenly rained down from the sky and hit Z-one, obscuring the cyborg in a thick cloud of smoke. His life points dropped further to 3600. When the smoke cleared however, the left side of Z-one's mask had shattered, revealing a wrinkled yet all too familiar face with tan skin and a distinctive yellow mark running down his cheek. His oddly shaped black hair also had a distinctive yellow highlight.

"I… don't believe it." A stunned Crow spoke.

"No… it can't be." A shocked Aki denied.

"What… what the hell?" Yusei exclaimed. "What is this? Who are you?"

"I am Z-one, the last human." The cyborg coldly replied. "But long ago I did go by another name… Yusei Fudo."

* * *

**Author's Note:** I had envisioned just how the first five turns of this duel were going to go since the very start of this story. I've must've gone over it hundreds of times in my mind. The hard part though was coming up with the cards Z-one was going to use. I didn't want him using his anime deck, as it would just sort of be rehashing the duel in the anime. Plus since Z-one is more or less a different character in this story, I felt that a different deck was more appropriate. Thus I came up with the Time's End monsters. They're pretty much cyborgs, but they'd be listed as Machine-types if they were ever made into real cards.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	23. In Another Lifetime

**Author's Note:** Just a heads up, this chapter is mostly flashback. It also gets kind of dark, but I'm sure many were expecting that. There's also a _Star Wars_ reference in it. I didn't plan it, it just sort of happened.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix.

* * *

Chapter 22: In Another Lifetime

"To think that my naive younger self would be the one to stand in my way." Z-one remarked. "It's actually rather ironic."

"Do you really… expect me to believe that you're me in the future?" Yusei denied. "There's no way I'd do any of the things that you've done! Or that I'd destroy an entire city of innocent people!"

"Had you experienced the same things as I have, you would've done everything that I have done." Z-one argued.

"Like hell!" Yusei shot back. "There's… just no way."

"You should be more focused on the duel." Z-one told him. "Haven't you noticed what has happened to Stardust Dragon?"

Yusei looked and saw that Stardust Dragon had turned grey and became like stone. The dragon's head suddenly fell of the body and soon Stardust collapsed into a pile of dust that blew away with the breeze.

"What… just happened?" a surprised Yusei wondered.

"When Time's End Sorceress is destroyed in battle, her power sends one of my opponent's monsters straight to the Graveyard without destroying it." Z-one explained. "Stardust Dragon's power can stop death by violence, but even it is powerless against the ravages of time. Now then, are you through with your turn?"

"…I'll end my turn." Yusei answered. "But only if you can prove that you really are who you say you are!"

"Yeah! If you're really an older Yusei, then tells how you got like this!" Jaden agreed.

"It's time you explain yourself, Z-one!" Yugi told him.

"Very well." Z-one agreed as he drew his next card. "I activate a Spell card, Recycled Remnants! And with the light of this card I shall reveal my past!" With that, a blinding light erupted from Z-one's card and enveloped the entire battlefield.

* * *

T_he light faded and Yusei, Yugi, and Jaden all found that they were standing on solid ground. Upon looking around, they saw that they were out in the yard behind the Fudo mansion._

_"Hey Yusei, why are we back at your house?" Jaden wondered._

_"Never mind that. Look." Yugi told them as he pointed to their right._

_Standing in front of a table to the three's right was a boy wearing a blue suit with shorts and a red bowtie. It was the kind of dorky-looking suit that most children were forced to wear by their parents. The boy was tinkering with a pair of duel disks. And from his distinctive hairstyle, Yusei and the other could tell who the boy was._

_"Is that you Yusei?" Jaden asked._

_"This… this isn't right." Yusei declared._

_"Yusei!" a voice called, getting the boy's attention. Walking towards him was a man who wore a white lab coat and had a distinct resemblance to Yusei._

_"Yusei, is that…?" Yugi began to ask._

_"That's… my dad." A stunned Yusei answered before Yugi could finish._

_"Your mother and I have been waiting for you." Dr. Fudo informed the young Yusei._

_"Sorry dad." Young Yusei replied. "I've been trying to adjust the sizes of my friends' duel disk bands. I told them I'd have them finished by tomorrow. Guess I lost track of time, huh?"_

_"Well, I know what it's like to lose yourself in a project." Dr. Fudo assured him as he tussled his son's hair. "Your friends' duel disks can wait until tonight though. We have company coming."_

_"Okay dad." The young Yusei replied before they headed back into the house._

_Another wave of light hit Yusei and the others. The light cleared and the scene had changed. The three duelist kings were now standing in the main hall of the mansion. Standing before the door, awaiting guests were Yusei's younger self, Dr. Fudo, and a woman with dark hair and yellow highlights that Jaden and Yugi assumed was Yusei's mother. The door opened and in walked two men, also wearing lab coats. One man had pale skin and dark hair that was cut just above his shoulders, and the other had spiked blonde hair and tan skin._

_"Who are these guys?" Jaden asked._

_"That's Rex and Rudger Goodwin." Yusei answered. "My dad worked with them on the Momentum reactor."_

_"There's out little genius!" Rudger greeted with a big grin as he went over to Yusei._

_"Hi Uncle Rudger." Young Yusei greeted back._

_"I have something for." Rudger revealed as he reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a Duel Monsters card._

_The young Yusei took the card and looked at it. "Stardust Dragon?"_

_"It's a very rare card. Perhaps the only one of its kind." Rudger told him. "You take good care of it now."_

_"I will." Young Yusei assured him. "Thank you Uncle Rudger."_

_"Really brother, you do spoil him too much." Rex told him._

_"Oh come on Rex. Loosen up a little bit." Rudger replied as he patted his younger brother hard on the back. "You'll probably live a lot longer."_

_Suddenly the doorbell rang, prompting Dr. Fudo to go and open it. Walking in was a man with grayish-brow hair and a beard wearing a black suit with a red tie. Coming in with him was a woman in blue with long burgundy red hair and gold eyes. Holding the woman's hand was a girl with the same color hair and eyes wearing a pink dress._

_"Glad you could come, Senator Izayoi." Dr. Fudo greeted._

_"I hope you don't mind that I brought my family with." Senator Izayoi replied as he shook Dr. Fudo's hand._

_"It's no trouble, Senator." Rex assured him. "We only hope that we can have your support in helping take the Momentum Project global."_

_"Well I'm greatly impressed with your reactor technology." The senator admitted. "But I think there are still a few details we need to go over before I decide whether or not to support you."_

_As Dr. Fudo and the Goodwin brothers began their talk with the senator, the senator's daughter went over to Young Yusei. "Hi there. I'm Aki."_

_"Uh, hi." Young Yusei greeted back with a blush. "I'm uh… uh, Yusei."_

_"Nice to meet you." Aki replied with a cheerful smile._

_"Yusei, why don't you and your new friend go somewhere and play for a bit?" Mrs. Fudo suggested. "I'm sure neither of you wants to stick around here while we talk about boring grown-up stuff."_

_"Can we go outside?" Aki asked._

_"Uh, sure." Young Yusei agreed as he rubbed the back of his head. With that, the two children left the room._

_"Looks like you and Aki really hit it off at the start." Jaden observed._

_"This isn't right." Yusei told him. "I mean this is how Aki and I met, but it was at an orphanage. This isn't how it happened at all."_

_"It's how it happened for me." Z-one deep booming voice spoke. "It seems that between the two of us, I had the better childhood. But my happiness did not last."_

_Yusei and the others were hit by another wave of light. The light cleared and the scene had changed again. The three duel kings were standing outside in what looked like a rich neighborhood in Domino City. Walking on the sidewalk across the street another Yusei, or rather Z-one's younger self, wearing a black jacket and jeans with a grey shirt. Yusei and the others noticed the somewhat nervous expression on the young Z-one's face._

_"This is me at age sixteen." Z-one's voice explained. "And it was on this particular day that my life began to crumble."_

_Young Z-one turned a corner and froze at something he saw in the distance. He ran down the adjoining sidewalk and Yusei and the others followed. What they came upon were four police cars and a few motorcycles along with a black van parked before the front gate of a mansion on a hill. The gate was open, and standing beside it in a grey suit was an older Rex Goodwin with long silver hair._

_Rex noticed Young Z-one's approach and turned to face him. "You shouldn't be here right now, Yusei."_

_"What's going on here Uncle Rex?" Young Z-one demanded to know. "Where's Aki? Is she okay?"_

_"Aki is unharmed, but there's been… an incident." Rex explained. "You should head home right now. I'll explain what has happened later."_

_Young Z-one then noticed Aki being escorted out by two officers. An expression of shock and horror was on her face._

_"Aki!" Young Z-one called, getting the burgundy-haired girl's attention._

_"Yusei?" a surprised Aki replied. "What are you…?"_

_"What's going on?" Young Z-one asked as he began to walk towards her._

_"Stay back!" Aki shouted, causing Young Z-one to freeze. "Don't… don't come near me. I don't want you to get hurt."_

_"Aki what…?" Young Z-one began to ask, but was cut off when Rex put his hand on his shoulder._

_"Take her away." Rex ordered the two officers with Aki._

_The officers nodded and escorted Aki into the back of the black van. Young Z-one could see tears streaming down Aki's cheeks as the doors of the van closed. With Aki inside, the van drove off down the road._

_"I'm sorry you had to see that, Yusei." Rex told him._

_A confused and angry Young Z-one turned back to face Rex. "What the hell is going on here? Answer me Uncle Rex!"_

_Rex sighed heavily as he rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I can see you won't be satisfied until you have answers. Very well, come with me."_

_Young Z-one followed Rex through the metal gate to the mansion. Seconds after they did, Yusei and the others were hit by another wave of light. Once the wave had passed, the scene had changed again to a room inside the Izayoi mansion. The couch in the center of the room had been toppled over and much of the furniture had been broken._

_"What on earth happened here?" Yugi wondered._

_"I… I think I know." Yusei answered._

_On cue, Young Z-one and Rex walked into the room. Young Z-one was greatly startled by what he saw. "What happened in here?"_

_"Aki happened, I'm afraid." Rex answered gravely. "It appears she has developed psychic powers. From what I've heard, she had an argument with her father and her powers flared to life, causing all this damage. The senator has been taken to the hospital. He's actually quite lucky to be alive."_

_"Psychic powers?" a skeptical Young Z-one scoffed. "Do you really expect me to buy that?"_

_"I found it hard to believe myself." Rex admitted. "But the mansion's security system caught the whole incident on camera. I can show you the footage, but I'm afraid it's all true."_

_"…So what happens to Aki now?" Young Z-one asked._

_"She's being taken to an institute called the Arcadia Movement." Rex answered. "They're known worldwide for their study of psychic powers. Hopefully with time, the movement will help Aki gain control of her abilities."_

_"I guess I won't be able to see her, huh?" Young Z-one realized._

_"I'm truly sorry this happened, Yusei." Rex told him. "I assume you came her today to finally admit your true feelings to Aki."_

_"How did you know?" Young Z-one asked._

_A small half smile formed on Rex's face. "I was young once too, you know. But your feelings for Aki were obvious to everyone who knew you. Have faith and be patient, Yusei. I'm sure you and Aki will have another chance."_

_"I did wait, as Rex told me to." Z-one's voice spoke. "I truly believed that Aki and I would have another chance. But when you're not allowed to see the person you care about, the person you… love, fate has a way of making the most unexpected things happened. I could never have anticipated what happened two years later."_

_Yusei and the others were hit by another wave of light and the scene changed yet again to the front door of the Izayoi mansion. Young Z-one approached the door wearing the same black outfit he wore in the earlier vision and knocked on the door._

_After a moment, the door opened and Mrs. Izayoi answered. "Oh! Uh, hello Yusei."_

_"Hi Mrs. Izayoi." Young Z-one greeted back. "I heard that Aki was finally home, so I came right over."_

_"Well… well yes, she's here." Mrs. Izayoi confirmed. "But I'm afraid this isn't the best time."_

_"Why? What's going on?" Young Z-one asked as a look of worry came to his face._

_Mrs. Izayoi sighed and stepped out of the way. "I suppose you might as well know now. Come on in."_

_Confused, Young Z-one stepped inside. Yusei and the other two followed. In moments they had all arrived in the mansion's sitting room. Senator Izayoi was there, as were both the Goodwin brothers. Young Z-one's eyes soon fixed on Aki, who was sitting on the couch. Her hair now had the silver ornament that the Aki of Yusei's timeline wore to keep in check. But sitting next to Aki on the couch was a man Young Z-one had never seen before. Though Yusei knew quite well who he was. He had brown hair with a long extension at the front that curved upward, and wore brown pants with a green shirt and vest._

_"Ah, I see we have an unexpected guest." The brown-haired man observed as he put his cup and saucer on the coffee table. "So, who do I have the pleasure of meeting?"_

_"Divine, this is Yusei Fudo." Rex introduced._

_"Ah, of course! Aki has told me about you." Divine replied. "I'm guessing you're here because you heard the good news."_

_"What's going on here?" Young Z-one asked._

_"Yusei, Divine is the head of the Arcadia Movement." Rex explained. "He's also the one who helped Aki control her powers."_

_"And as of yesterday, Aki has agreed to marry me." Divine revealed, greatly shocking both Young Z-one and Yusei. "We were just telling her parents the good news."_

_"Aki… is this true?" Young Z-one asked, still very much in shock._

_"Yes… yes it is." Aki confirmed, though she looked very unsure._

_"Yusei, please have a word with me in the hall." Rex requested as he got up._

_Young Z-one followed Rex into the hallway right outside the room. Yusei and the other two followed close behind._

_"I never intended for you to find out this way, Yusei." Rex told him. "I know that this isn't what any of us wanted. But there are some political issues involved in all this. This arrangement will be better for everyone in the long run."_

_"Will it be better for Aki?" Young Z-one asked. "I could see it on her face that she doesn't really want to marry that guy."_

_"Are you certain of that? Or are you letting you own emotions cloud your perceptions?" Rex argued. "I know this is hard for you, Yusei. But sacrifices must be made for the greater good. Go home. This will all get better with time."_

_Young Z-one opened his mouth to argue, but no words came out. After a moment he relented and turned to leave._

_"Are you okay Yusei?" a concerned Yugi asked._

_"Yeah… I think so." Yusei assured him._

_"Hey man, you know this isn't your life, right?" Jaden reminded him. "You and Aki did end up together."_

_"I know. It's just…" Yusei responded. "Seeing things happen like this… why wouldn't I have fought for her?"_

_"I asked myself that very question years later." Z-one's voice answered. "But at the time, I felt that Rex was right. Fighting for Aki would've only made things complicated. So I turned a blind eye. In only two weeks, Aki and Divine were married. Not long after, my mother died of a sudden illness. Out of frustration and sorrow I began wandering the streets. I ended up getting involved in fights. After one such fight two months later I was arrested and ended up here."_

_Yusei and the others were hit by another wave of light. The wave passed and the scene had changed to the inside of Rex's office. Young Z-one stood in front of Rex's desk wearing an outfit similar to the one Yusei wore in his own timeline. The same yellow criminal mark Yusei had gotten when Team Satisfaction was arrested was now on the face of his alternate counterpart._

_"What do you have to say for yourself?" a very displeased Rex asked from behind his desk._

_"Nothing, I guess." Young Z-one answered as he looked away._

_"Your father of course is furious." Rex told him. "Do you know what this would do to his reputation if it became public?"_

_"Sorry if I don't really give a damn." Young Z-one told him._

_Rex sighed and stood up to face the window behind his desk. "You're very lucky that you're only getting off with a slap behind the wrist. If this happens again, I won't be able to help you. Be grateful that you're getting this second chance."_

_"Fine! It won't happen again." Young Z-one responded._

_"See that it doesn't." Rex told him as he turned back around. His expression then softened a bit. "I know how hard these past few month have been for you, Yusei. But there are far better ways for you to channel your anger. I know for a fact that you're quite skilled at Duel Monsters. Have you ever considered taking up the sport of Turbo Dueling?"_

_"I have been working on a D-Wheel at nights." Yusei admitted._

_"Then perhaps you would do well in the upcoming Turbo Duel tournament coming next week." Rex proposed. "I can have you entered, if you like. I'm sure you would do quite well."_

_"…Why not?" Young Z-one finally agreed._

_A small smirk formed on Rex's face. "You might be interested to know that one of the competitors is the daughter of one of your father's colleagues. Her name is Sherry LeBlanc. And from what I've heard, she quite skilled. She should give you a good challenge."_

_Young Z-one began to smirk as well. "We'll see about that."_

_"Little did I know what Rex truly had in mind with this little tournament." Z-one's voice spoke._

_Another wave of light hit and the scene changed again. This time Yusei and the others had ended up standing in the middle of Domino Stadium. A Turbo Duel was going on between Young Z-one and Sherry. Young Z-one had Stardust Dragon out, while Sherry had no monsters to protect her._

_"Stardust Dragon, attack Sherry directly!" Young Z-one commanded. "Shooting Sonic!"_

_Stardust Dragon fired a blast of glittering sound waves that stuck Sherry in the back. The blonde Turbo Duelist's life points feel to zero and the duel ended._

_"And we have a winner!" the tournament M.C. declared. "Give it up for newcomer, Yusei Fudo!" The audience erupted into a cheering frenzy as Yusei and Sherry came to a stop._

_Sherry removed her helmet and looked as Young Z-one with a smirk. "You're not half bad for a rookie."_

_"You're pretty good too." Young Z-one complimented back._

_"Wanna head back to the lounge for a bit?" Sherry asked._

_"Fine with me." Young Z-one agreed._

_Another wave of light hit and Yusei and the others ended up in the stadium lounge. Young Z-one and Sherry were both already there chatting over coffee._

_"So your dad and mine sometimes work together on that Momentum reactor thing." Sherry recalled._

_"I've actually met your dad a few times while helping him with the reactor." Young Z-one revealed. "He actually a pretty nice guy."_

_"You know, I think it's kind of a waste that you're helping on that reactor stuff." Sherry remarked. "You should take up Turbo Dueling professionally."_

_"I guess I never thought about it before." Young Z-one replied as he took another sip from his cup. "Does seem like it'd be fun."_

_"Glad to see that you two are hitting it off so well." A voice interrupted. Everyone looked to see Rex walking into the room. "I couldn't help but overhear what the two of you were talking about. You know Yusei your father can certainly handle things without you. Perhaps this is just what you need in your life right now. In think both you and Sherry would do quite well in the pro league."_

_"How 'bout it champ? Think you can keep up with me?" Sherry playfully asked._

_Young Z-one smirked. "I think I can manage."_

_As the three duelist kings watched the display before them, a look of disgust formed on Yusei's face. Yugi and Jaden were a bit surprised by this development implied as well._

_"So… Yusei ended up with Sherry in this timeline?" Jaden asked. "I mean I guess she's not bad-looking, but she's sort of… a prickly pare if you catch my drift."_

_"There is no need to be polite, Jaden Yuki." Z-one's voice spoke. "Soon after this, Sherry and I had entered the pro league and quickly became known as the king and queen of Turbo Duels. Even then, I admit that there was an attraction between the two of us. We ended up pursuing a relationship. Even so, my feelings for Aki remained. We would still see one another at the occasional society function. But circumstances continued to force us apart, and in time I made yet another decision that I would live to regret."_

_Yusei and the other two were hit by another wave of light. It passed and the three had ended up inside what looked to be a dressing room. Young Z-one was dressed in a black tuxedo and was straightening his blue tie._

_"Don't tell me…" Yusei spoke._

_"This is shortly before my wedding to Sherry." Z-one confirmed._

_Young Z-one was distracted by his final preparations by a sudden knock on the door. Upon answering it, he saw that it was Aki wearing a red jacket and skirt with a pink shirt. A pair of sunglasses with pink frames covered her eyes._

_"Hi Yusei." Aki greeted with a warm smile._

_"Uh, hi Aki." A surprised Young Z-one greeted back. "What, uh… what brings you here?"_

_"I just wanted to congratulate you." Aki explained as she walked in. "You and Sherry look like you'll make a good couple."_

_"Thanks." Young Z-one replied. "…Hey Aki, why do you have those sunglasses on inside?"_

_"Oh, I do?" a somewhat startled Aki asked. "I, uh… I guess I just forgot to take them off."_

_Suspicious, Young Z-one walked up to Aki. Gently he removed her sunglasses to reveal that her left eye had become black and swollen. He had seen this many times before in his street fighting days. Someone had clearly given her a black eye._

_"Aki, what happened?" a worried Young Z-one asked._

_"It, it's nothing." Aki assured him as she turned away from him. "I… I just had a little fall last night."_

_"Divine did this, didn't he?" Young Z-one quickly deduced. As the scene played out, Yusei's hands balled into fists at his side. "How long has this been going on Aki?"_

_"Look Yusei, it's… it's nothing to worry about, okay?" Aki insisted as she took back her sunglasses. "Divine's just been under a lot of pressure lately."_

_"That's no excuse for him to use you as a punching bag!" Young Z-one told her. "Aki… how can you put up with this?"_

_"What choice do I have?" Aki responded, almost shouting. "Look Yusei… this is just the way things are. We just have to live with it… okay?"_

_Young Z-one remained silent. After a moment, Aki headed for the door._

_"Aki." Young Z-one finally spoke as she opened the door. "When did everything go wrong? How did our lives end up this way?"_

_"I don't know." Aki answered sadly. "But… there's no way to change it. See you around, Yusei."_

_After Aki shut the door behind her, Young Z-one stood silently in the middle of the room. His hands had balled into fists just as Yusei's had. After a moment he finally cried out and punched the mirror, causing massive cracks to form._

_"It took every once of restraint I had to keep myself from beating Divine to death." Z-one's voice spoke. "The wedding went on without incident. After a few years of matrimony, I retired from the pro league to continue working with my father. And over time, I saw how incompatible Sherry and I truly were. Her harsh tongue began to wear on my nerves over the passing years. Yet we stayed together out of society's expectations of us. I cooped by throwing myself into my work. While Sherry used… other methods."_

_Yusei and the others were hit by another wave of light and wound up inside a lavish apartment with white walls. Young Z-one, now a few years older than Yusei, walked into the apartment and hung his lab coat on the hanger by the door. But when he turned his head he saw Sherry wearing nothing but a pink silk robe kissing a dark-haired man who was still fully dressed. Young Z-one cleared his throat, startling the two from their kiss. A look of fright appeared on the stranger's face, while Sherry's expression turned to one of annoyance._

_"Who the hell are you?" Young Z-one asked the stranger._

_"I'm, uh… I'm leaving." The stranger answered before quickly hurrying past Young Z-one and leaving the room._

_"Well thank you very much." Sherry sarcastically spoke as she crossed her arms. "What the hell are you doing back here?"_

_"I decided to come home early. What the hell were you doing?" Young Z-one demanded to know._

_"As if you really give a damn!" Sherry shot back. "All you do is spend time at that freaking lab, and now all of the sudden you want to play the devoted husband?"_

_"I'm needed down at the reactor!" Young Z-one told him. "The thing's been acting odd lately."_

_"I guess you would know since you spend a hell of a lot more time with it than you do me!" Sherry fired back._

_"Damn it, I do not want to have this conversation right now!" Young Z-one told her, almost shouting._

_"Oh yeah, just avoid things like you always do!" Sherry replied. "I know, maybe you'd probably pay more attention to me if I had red hair and gold eyes. That's right, I know!"_

_Suddenly Young Z-one slapped Sherry hard in the face, bringing a conversation to an end. After a moment he regained his sensed. "I'm going back to the lab. If I were you, I'd spend a few days at a hotel."_

_With that, Young Z-one retrieved his lab coat and slammed the door behind him. Yusei, Yugi, and Jaden were simply stunned by what they had just seen._

_"I regretted what I had done after a few hours had gone by." Z-one's voice admitted. "I had become as bad as Divine. But when one spends years with someone with a harsh tongue, that person's anger reaches a boiling point. It consumes that person until it finally lashes out. That was the last time I ever saw Sherry, but not because she finally left me. It was what happened that following day that changed everything."_

_Another wave of light hit and Yusei and the others ended up in what looked like a large cafeteria. An exhausted Young Z-one sat at one of the tables rubbing his temples. His lab coat looked as though it had been slept in._

_"Hi there." A voice greeted, getting Young Z-one's attention. He looked to see Aki standing a few feet away from him wearing a pink turtleneck sweater and black pants._

_"Oh, hi Aki." Young Z-one greeted back. "What brings you here?"_

_"I had a little time today, so I thought I'd drop by." Aki explained. "You okay? You look tired."_

_"The chairs here at the lab aren't that comfortable to sleep in." Young Z-one answered._

_"You slept here?" a surprised Aki asked. "How come?"_

_"Sherry and I are having problems." Young Z-one admitted._

_"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that." Aki replied as she sat in a nearby chair. "Is there anything I…?"_

_Before Aki could finish her question, she was interrupted by the sound of a loud explosion coming from outside. The two of them quickly got up to see what was going on. Yugi, Yusei, and Jaden quickly followed. In moments they were outside of the building, and what they saw was something very unexpected. The sky had become filled with large robots. Some were white and had a human shape while others were blue and shaped like birds. There was also a third type that was gold and bulky._

_"What the heck are those?" Jaden asked._

_"They're Meklords." Yusei answered._

_The Meklords flew through the air, indiscriminately firing on the city. Suddenly one of the Granels came down and aimed its arm cannon at Young Z-one and Aki. Just as it fired, Aki pushed Young Z-one to the ground._

_"AKI!" a horrified Yusei called out as the blast washed out everything in an explosion of light._

_The scene changed again as the light cleared. This time they were inside some kind of lab or hospital room. Still in shock over seeing Aki get shot by a Granel, Yusei fell to his knees._

_"Get a hold of yourself, Yusei." Jaden told him. "This is just Z-one playing things back for us, remember? Aki's just fine."_

_Before Yusei could respond, Rex suddenly entered the room. Pressing a switch near the door, the bed in middle of the room rotated so that the surface was vertical. Lying on the table was an unconscious Young Z-one. He had on no shirt and his right arm had been replaced with a mechanical prosthetic. An implant was now covering his right eye and the top of his head._

_Young Z-one opened his remaining eye and was shocked to see himself in the mirror on the opposite wall of the room. "What… happened to me?"_

_"You've been injured, Yusei." Rex explained. "Fortunately we were able to get to you just in time."_

_"Where's Aki?" Young Z-one asked. "Is she safe?"_

_"I'm sorry Yusei. She's dead." Rex informed him._

_"NNNNOOOOOOO!" Young Z-one cried out as he staggered off the tilted bed, forcibly detaching the tubes and wires from the medical equipment connected to him._

_"Calm yourself, Yusei." Rex told him. "There's much I have to tell you. I'm afraid Aki is not the only one who has died. Both your father and my brother have perished in this invasion as well. But we have to remain strong for them. It's now up to us to save the rest of the human race."_

_In his rage, Young Z-one grabbed Rex by the neck with his mechanical arm and lifted him into the air, choking the life out of him. "All my life I've listened to you and done everything that you've said. And now because of you… I'VE LOST EVERYTHING!"_

_Young Z-one threw Rex hard into the wall, killing him in an instant. The cyborg then began tearing everything in the room to pieces. When his tantrum ended, Young Z-one collapsed into a corner of the room and was sobbing. Another wave of light hit Yusei and the others, causing the scene to change again. This time they were inside a darkened lab where Young Z-one was slaving over a computer._

_"I do not know why decided to keep going after that day." Z-one's voice spoke. "That day I had lost both my father and the only woman I had ever truly loved. The world was crumbling all around me. Yet I pressed on and began searching for the reason the Meklords had come into being. What I discovered was nothing I had ever expected._

_"I had found that the Momentum Reactor's rotation was influenced by pure human emotions, with Synchro Summons acting as a catalyst. Humanity's wickedness and greed was threatening to cause the reactors around the world to spin backwards, causing a massive Zero Reverse. To try and prevent this, the system governing the reactors somehow created the Meklords to correct the problem. They were designed to home in on living beings with negative emotions and eliminate them. And it was that characteristic that allowed me to device a plan to try and save what remained of the human race."_

_The scene changed yet again after another wave of light struck. Yusei and the others found that they were standing in the middle of a ruined city. To either side of them was a hoard of Meklords, but they were all motionless. There were no lights swirling in their chests. Between the two armies Young Z-one led a massive group of survivors down the street on his D-Wheel. Despite all that had happened, the survivors all seemed to be in very good spirits._

_"Hey, how come the Meklords aren't trying to kill those people?" Jaden wondered._

_"They look like they've all shut down." Yugi noticed._

_"As I said, the Meklords attack only those with negative emotions." Z-one's voice explained. "With the help of Shooting Star Dragon, I rallied together as many people as I could and told them what I had learned of the Momentum reactor and the Meklords. I told them that the only way to stop it all and set the world right was for them to abandon their desires for power and learn to understand one another. Those I had gathered had learned to do just that, and it seemed that there was still hope. But it was all in vain."_

_Suddenly the ground shoot and a massive crack in the earth opened up, swallowing practically all of the survivors that Young Z-one had gathered together. Young Z-one attempted to save the life of a young woman who was falling into the pit. But her grip was too weak and she soon fell in towards the sea of magma below. In rage and despair, Young Z-one cried out and punched the ground._

_"Despite all my efforts, the human race's dark desires were still far to great." Z-one's voice continued. "What remained of my hope for the human race died that day. I decided to find another way to fix what had happen. And along the way I picked up yet another survivor."_

_The scene changed yet again to a different part of the city. Young Z-one drove across the ruined landscape on his D-Wheel, which now had a cannon mounted on the side. He stopped when he saw a few feet from him a man in a purple riding suit about to be shot by a Granel._

_"Hey, isn't that Bruno" Jaden realized._

_Just as the Granel was about to open fire, Young Z-one fired his own cannon and destroyed the Meklord robot, surprising Bruno. The young cyborg then dismounted and approached him on foot._

_"You can throw your life away if you want." Young Z-one told Bruno. "I wouldn't blame you if you did. But if you still believe that this world can be saved, then come with me. We'll find a way to fix it together." With that, he began to walk back to his D-Wheel._

_"Hey, I think I know who you are!" Bruno spoke. "Aren't you Yusei Fudo?"_

_Young Z-one stopped and turned back to face Bruno with a cold look in his eye. "That name no longer has any meaning to me. This world is crumbling, but I'm not going to die until I find a way to fix it. Even if that means I'm the last one left alive in the rubble. So from now on, call me Z-one."_

_With that, Bruno and the young Z-one drove off together to begin their quest to try and save the planet. Soon after Yusei and the others were hit by another wave of light._

* * *

The light cleared and Yusei and the others were back in the duel. A pair of metal spheres, each with a single red light on top, had appeared by Z-one. Yusei was still in shock over what he had just seen. But he was not the only one who witnessed Z-one's recounting of his past. Even though they were not present with Yusei, Yugi, and Jaden, those who had been watching the duel had seen the vision as well. Aki had fallen to her knees in shock.

"I… don't believe it." Crow spoke. "That… that can't have been real."

"I'm afraid… it was." Bruno gravely spoke. "Now that we've seen that vision, my memories are fully restored. Z-one really is the Yusei Fudo from my time."

"Now then, back to the duel." Z-one decided. "Using Recycled Remnants, I banished Time's End Speeder and Time's End Mechanic in my Graveyard to summon two Remnant Tokens. I now summon a second Time's End Probe." Another robotic probe like the one Z-one had summoned earlier appeared on the track. "Because I have a Time's End monster on the field, I summon the first Time's End Probe from the Graveyard." The first probe reappeared on the track in a flash of light. "I now tune a level one Time's End Probe into a level one Remnant Token for a level two Synchro Summon!"

The first probe changed into a single ring of blue green light and encircled one of the metal spheres. The sphere in turn changed into a single golden star.

"Clustering desires will call out a forbidden speed's horizon! Become the path that leads to destruction!" Z-one chanted. "Synchro Summon! The power of despair, Synchro Tuner, Warship Synchron!"

The lights flashed and became a horizontal column of golden light. Emerging from the light was a small red and black spacecraft with two red blade-like wings on each side. On top of the ship was a black helmet with a single red light for an eye.

"I tune the second level one Time's End Probe into the second level one Remnant Token for another level two Synchro Summon!" Z-one announced.

The second probe changed into a ring of blue-green light that encircled the other sphere. The sphere quickly changed into another ball of golden light.

"Clustering desires will call out to a seeker of a non-existent future! Create the path that leads to despair!" Z-one chanted. "Synchro Summon! Launch, Stardust Pathfinder!"

The lights flashed into a horizontal column of blue energy. Emerging from the light was a long silver spacecraft with two small fins on each side towards the end. At the end of each of these fins was a curved solar panel.

"I now activated the effect of Stardust Pathfinder and a certain monster from my Extra Deck!" Z-one announced. "Appear now, Stardust Dragon!"

A ray of blue light shot from the front of Stardust Pathfinder. A second Stardust Dragon emerged from the beam with a roar. Unlike Yusei's dragon, the scales of this Stardust Dragon were darker and its eyes were red instead of yellow.

"I shall end my turn there." Z-one decided. "But know that there is nothing any of you can do to save yourselves."

"Please, stop this." Aki suddenly begged as she got back to her feet, getting Z-one attention. "If you really are Yusei, than you'll stop this right now!"

"Why should I?" Z-one indifferently asked.

"Because the Yusei I know wouldn't do this!" Aki told him. "He wouldn't kill people in cold blood even if it did mean changing the future!"

Z-one looked down at Aki with a cold eye. "You have been dead to me for years. Why should your words carry any weight now? I am doing what needs to be done."

"I see…" Aki replied sadly as she looked away. "Then you really aren't the Yusei I know."

"No Aki, he's not." Jack agreed. "The Yusei Fudo I know wouldn't be pathetic enough to simply lie down and become Goodwin's puppet like that old man did!"

"In this case I have to agree with Atlas." Kaiba interjected. "Don't get me wrong, I don't buy that vision we just saw or a lot of what's going on here. But if there's any truth to what we've just seen, than this Z-one is a weakling! And a weakling has no chance of winning this duel! Yugi! End this duel and show Z-one how pathetic he truly is!"

"Alright Kaiba. This duel has gone on long enough!" Yugi agreed as he closed his eyes and drew from his deck. "I discard one card to Special Summon The Tricky!"

Appearing on the track was a humanoid figure in a yellow and black court jester's outfit. Rather than a face, the jester had a large red question mark.

"And now I reveal my face down card, Tricky Spell 4!" Yugi announced. "Because you have three monsters on the field, I can sacrifice The Tricky to summon three Tricky Tokens!" The Tricky then split apart into three copies of itself. "I sacrifice all three Tricky Tokens to summon one of the most powerful beings imaginable!"

Suddenly the marks of all the Signers began to glow. The Tricky Tokens shattered and a column of golden light shot into the air. Appearing on the track above Yugi was a large golden metal sphere that gave of a light like that of the sun.

"Almighty protector of the sun and sky. I beg of thee, please heed my cry." Yugi chanted. "Transform myself from orb of light and bring me victory in this fight. I beseech thee, grace our humble game. But first I shall… call out thy name, Winged Dragon of Ra!"

As Yugi chanted, the sphere began to unfold, becoming a magnificent dragon with a body made of gold metal and a head like that of a bird. It had red eyes and what looked like a large blue gem embedded in the top of its head. On it back between its wings was a single gold ring.

"There it is! Yugi's strongest God Card!" Joey identified.

"The Winged Dragon of Ra gains the combined ATK and DEF of the monsters used to summon it!" Yugi announced. "And since each Tricky Token had 2000 ATK, Ra's ATK is now 6000!"

Suddenly Z-one and his three monsters began to increase their speed. "Humanity's arrogant desires shall open the door to a forbidden evolution! Become the path that leads to ruin!"

"Ra, attack Warship Synchron!" Yugi commanded. "God Blaze Cannon!"

"Delta Accel!" Z-one called out.

Just as Ra fired a blast of flames from his jaws, Z-one and his monsters took off, creating a massive explosion of blinding light. When the light finally died down, a new dragon equal to size in Ra had appeared behind Z-one. The dragon greatly resembled Shooting Star Dragon, but it right arm and the top half of its torso were mechanical, as was its tail. On its back it had four metal wings arranged like the wings of a dragonfly. The top half of its head was covered in metal as well, with three straight horns and red eyes. In the center of the cyborg dragon's chest was a swirling black vortex.

"That thing is Z-one's Delta Accel monster?" a surprised Crow observed.

"What's with that hole in the center of its chest?" Tea wondered.

"It looks like… a black hole!" Noah observed.

"You may have summoned a new monster Z-one, but it only has 4000 ATK!" Yugi pointed out. "There's no way it can stand against Ra!"

"Don't be so sure." Z-one told him.

Before Yugi could respond, Ra suddenly glowed with a purple aura and was pulled towards Star Void Dragon. Ra opened his mouth and prepared to fire another stream of flames as if to fight back.

"Zero Reverse!" Z-one commanded.

Star Void Dragon fired a blast of purple light from its mouth that shattered Ra to bits. The life points of the three duel kings dropped to 2700.

"Impossible!" a stunned Kaiba exclaimed. "Ra is the strongest of the three God cards, the strongest monster in the whole game! How could it lose to Z-one's dragon?"

"What just happened?" an equally stunned Yugi asked.

"Even the sun is powerless against the might of a black hole." Z-one replied. "During my opponent's Battle Phase, all monsters in Attack Mode must to battle with Star Void Dragon. Your ancient gods are no exception. Furthermore, any monster that does battle with Star Void has its ATK reduced to zero, and I gain life points equal to what that monster's ATK was."

"How do we beat a monster like that?" Jaden wondered.

"You can't." Z-one coldly replied. "This dragon represents what the human races endless desires shall bring, only a void. And like the rest of humanity, this dragon of desires shall bring forth your end as well."

* * *

**Author's Note:** Back when I watched the original anime, I was excited when it was implied that Z-one was really a future version of Yusei. So I'm sure many can imagine my disappointment when we all found out that he wasn't actually what he appeared to be. During the duel, Yusei declared that he couldn't be capable of committing the acts that Z-one had committed, and then Z-one just broke down and admitted that he was just some scientist that made himself into a Yusei copy. To me that was a major cop out. A person is shaped a good deal by the events in his or her life, and Z-one would've most likely lived quite a different life than the Yusei we all knew and cheered for and thus have been a different person.

So with that in mind for this story, I tried to figure out what kind of life would've led Yusei to becoming Z-one. I figured that the Meklord apocalypse alone wouldn't be enough to change him. It would have to be a whole series of unfortunate events. Of course Aki getting killed was probably the straw that broke the camel's back. The biggest challenge of this chapter was getting all the backstory into it, which is why this chapter is so monstrously long (I ended up pulling an all nighter to get it done). Anyway, next comes the thrilling conclusion to this epic duel, so stay tuned.

In the meantime, please review and let me know what you think.


	24. Hope and Possibilities! Collision Xyz!

**Author's Note:** In a review of the last chapter, the question was raised about how Star Void Dragon was able to destroy The Winged Dragon of Ra. I had a feeling someone would ask a question like that. The answer to that question though is that Star Void Dragon is a monster that's evolved to a level that's equal to that of a God Card. But it is still vulnerable to the effects of certain cards. Sorry if I didn't make that real clear. As for why Yugi didn't use Ra's Pheonix mode, Star Void Dragon's summoning and effects happened too fast for him to do so. I hope those are satisfactory answers.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix.

* * *

Chapter 23: Hope and Possibilities! Collision Xyz!

"No matter how hard you try, you cannot win this duel." Z-one declared. "Just as you cannot save the human race by sparing Neo Domino. My way is the only option."

"You're wrong Z-one!" Yugi argued. "Your way only leads to destruction! Humanity's greed and lust for power can be overcome!"

"That is a naïve and foolish belief." Z-one told him. "No matter how hard people try, they cannot overcome their own dark desires. I've seen it with my own eyes."

"Your eyes have been clouded by years of bitterness and despair!" Yugi told him. "And because of that, you've lost your faith in humanity!"

"Are you quite done?" Z-one coldly asked. "We are still in the middle of a duel."

"Fine. I end my turn." Yugi announced.

Jaden drew his next card. "I summon Elemental Hero Wildheart in Defense Mode!"

Appearing on the track in a kneeling position was a muscular warrior with dark skin and a long black ponytail. His body was decorated in red tribal markings.

"That is the best you can muster?" Z-one asked.

"That's all I can do for now." Jaden admitted. "But we will still take you down!"

"It is pointless for you all to resist." Z-one told them. "Your misplaced faith in humanity's ability to overcome its own darkness."

"You're dead wrong about that Z-one! And I'm living proof!" Jaden argued. "I fell into darkness when I became the Supreme King. But I overcame it because I had people who believed in me! It's the same for everyone else!"

"I tried that before, remember?" Z-one pointed out. "The survivors I tried to save all believed in one another as well. Yet they were still destroyed. The darkness of the human race was far too great to overcome. Surely my younger self has now realized this."

"You're me…" Yusei spoke. "And yet you're not me. You're probably right Z-one, if I had the life you did, I probably would've done everything you have. But it's a two-way street! If you had lived my life, you would be fighting alongside Yugi, Jaden, and everyone else to stop this!"

"An interesting notion." Z-one admitted. "But it changes nothing. The human race is still headed for ruin because of their endless desires. The only option is to destroy Neo Domino and remove Momentum from history."

"You still don't get it, do you?" Yusei observed. "What you've done so far has already changed the past. It's made me the man I am today. And it's also created an entirely new future! I'm going to fight you to make sure that future still happens!"

"Still so naive." Z-one scoffed.

Yusei drew his next card. "I summon Junk Blader in Attack Mode!" The caped warrior appeared on the track. "Next I discard one card to summon Jackie Jumper!" The ski jumping robot appeared next to Junk Blader. "I tune the level three Jackie Jumper into the level four Junk Blader for a level seven Synchro Summon!"

Jackie Jumper flashed orange and changed into three green rings of light. The rings encircled Junk Blader and transformed him into four white stars.

"Chilling Flames engulf the entire world. Pitch-dark Flower set into bloom!" Yusei chanted. "Synchro Summon! Appear now, Black Rose Dragon!"

The lights flashed and burst into a storm of purple flames. The inferno subsided to reveal Aki's dragon.

"What the… Black Rose Dragon?" a surprised Crow repeated. "What's Yusei doing with that?"

"I lent it to him for this duel." Aki explained as a smile appeared on her face.

"I activate Black Rose Dragon's effect!" Yusei announced. "When she's Synchro Summoned, I can destroy all cards on the field!"

Black Rose Dragon roared and exploded into a massive burst of purple flames and red rose petals that enveloped the entire area. When the inferno finally subsided, all of the monsters on the battlefield were gone. The star-filled depths of space had replaced z-one's otherworldly graveyard.

"What is this?" Z-one asked.

"Since I destroyed Time's End Cemetery using Black Rose Dragon's effect, I was able to play Cosmic Dragon Space from my deck." Yusei announced.

"Wow! Sweet move." Jaden praised. "But you did kind of leave us defenseless."

"I've got it covered." Yusei assured him. "I set one card on the field and end my turn!"

"Such a pointless display." Z-one remarked.

Suddenly a small black hole appeared near Z-one and began to grow in size. As it grew, the hole pulled in bits of stardust from the surrounding space, and in moments the dust formed into the body of Star Void Dragon.

"What the…? That thing came back?" Jaden exclaimed.

"When Star Void Dragon is destroyed by a card effected, it reappears during the end of the turn it was destroyed." Z-one explained as he drew his next card. "Now then, I summon Time's End Bomber in Attack Mode!"

Appearing on the track was a large metal sphere with a green lens on the front and a red light beeping on the top. Suddenly the sphere was pulled towards Star Void Dragon and began to implode. Upon being crushed, the sphere exploded and hit Yusei and the other two with debris. Their life points dropped down to 700.

"What just happened?" Jaden wondered.

"As long as Star Void Dragon exists on the field, all other monsters I summon are instantly pulled in by its gravity and destroyed." Z-one explained. "And when Time's End Bomber is destroyed by a card effect, it inflicts 2000 points of damage. Now then, time to end this! Attack them directly Star Void Dragon! Zero Reverse!"

"I activate a Trap, Scrap-Iron Scarecrow!" Yusei quickly announced.

Star Void Dragon fired another blast of purple energy at the three duel kings. But before it could strike, Yusei's scarecrow appeared and blocked the attack with a barrier.

"Your struggles are pointless." Z-one insisted. "I shall end my turn, but on my next turn you shall finally meet your end."

"That's where you're wrong, Z-one!" Yusei told him. "Yugi! Jaden! Let's end this!"

Yugi nodded as he drew his next card. "I activate the Spell, Card of Sanctity! This card lets each of us draw until we each have six cards in our hands! Then I summon Kuriboh in Defense Mode!"

Appearing on the track was a small brown ball of fur with four green scaly legs. The only thing it had to show for a face was a pair of yellow eyes with purple irises.

"That ends my turn." Yugi announced.

"Which means I'm up!" Jaden declared as he drew his next card. "I summon Winged Kuriboh in Defense Mode!"

Materializing on the track was a monster that was practically identical to the one Yugi had just played. The only difference was that it had a pair of white-feathered wings on the sides of its body.

"That does it for me." Jaden announced.

Yusei drew his next card. "I summon Junk Mail in Attack Mode!" The helmet-like Tuner appeared in the track. "Next I activate Monster Reborn and summon Screwturn the Apprentice Warrior back to the field!" The screw-headed robot reappeared on the track next to Junk Mail. "Now I tune my level one Junk Mail into Yugi's level one Winged Kuriboh to Synchro Summon a level two monster in Defense Mode!"

Junk Mail flashed orange and changed into a single green ring of light. The light encircled Kuriboh and transformed the fur ball into a single white star.

"Clustering wishes will call out a new speed's horizon! Become the path its light shines upon!" Yusei chanted. "Synchro Summon! The power of hope, Synchro Tuner, Formula Synchron!"

The lights flashed into a horizontal column of white energy. The energy quickly subsided to reveal Yusei's robotic racecar.

"Since I summoned Formula Synchron, I get to draw one card!" Yusei announced. "Now I tune my level two Screwturn into Jaden's level one Winged Kuriboh to Synchro Summon a level three monster in Defense Mode!"

Screwturn flashed orange and changed into two rings of red light. The ring encircled the winged fur ball belonging to Jaden and changed it into a single white star.

"The flames of hope spark into blazing flowers! Their scattered petals create the path toward tomorrow!" Yusei chanted. "Synhcro Summon! Ignite, Synchro Tuner, Cyber Rose Angel!"

The lights flashed and ignited into a pillar of rose-colored flames. The fire died down to reveal Aki's cybernetic angel.

"When Cyber Rose Angel is summoned to the field, my opponent takes 300 points of damage!" Yusei announced.

Cyber Rose Angel shot a fireball from her mechanical arm. Z-one was hit in the chest by the projectile and his life points dropped slightly to 9300.

"Now I activate the effect of Cosmic Dragon Space!" Yusei announced. "Twice per turn, I can summon a Dragon-type Synchro monster from my Graveyard by banishing monsters whose combined levels equal the level of the dragon I'm summoning. So I banish the level two Screwturn and the level six Mighty Warrior, along with the level three Jackie Jumper and the level four Junk Blader, to summon Stardust Dragon and Black Rose Dragon in Defense Mode!"

Two large stars, one blue and one red, shot down from above and stopped near Yusei. The blue star changed into Stardust Dragon, while the red star became Black Rose.

"That ends my turn." Yusei announced.

"I see. So you're planning to perform an Accel Synchro summon." Z-one deduced as he drew his next card. "But it will do you no good. Star Void Dragon is far too powerful."

Yusei took a deep breath and closed his eyes. Down on the ground with the other spectators, Aki did the same thing.

"I activate Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy Scrap-Iron Scarecrow!" Z-one announced.

A small twister appeared on the battlefield and destroyed Yusei's Trap. At the same time, Yusei and his four monsters began to speed up.

"Now I activate the Spell card, Card Rotator!" Z-one announced. "By discarding a card, I can change all my opponent's monsters to Attack Mode!"

"Accel Synchro!" Yusei suddenly called out.

Yusei and his four monsters took off as a streak of pinkish-red light. The streak performed a lap around the track, and when it came full circle it exploded in a blinding white flash. After a few moments the light finally faded to reveal a single large dragon that greatly resembled Shooting Star Dragon and glowed with a magnificent aura. The new dragon had a long neck and five crystalline horns that went back on its head. On its back were four massive wings covered in red crystalline rose petals, and covering its tail were red crystal thorns. The dragon's hands and feet ended in red claws, and on its wrists were two long golden bracelets. The dragon's torso was covered in golden armor, and the seal of the Crimson Dragon blazed red on the front of the chest plate around a large blue gemstone. Orbiting around the dragon were two balls of light, one red and one blue.

"What… what is this?" a visibly shocked Z-one asked.

Down on the ground, Misty looked and noticed that someone was missing. "Hey! Where's Aki?"

"Her D-Wheel's gone too!" Carly noticed.

"Look up there!" Leo called as he pointed at the dragon.

Yusei and Aki were sitting on the back of the glowing dragon's neck, with Yusei sitting in front. In Yusei's hand was a golden rope that led to a bit in the dragon's mouth and served as the reigns. Both of their riding helmets had disappeared. Yusei had on a gold jacket with the design of his normal shirt and a flap on the front that reached over to the left and buttoned up, along with a pair of long gold pants, boots, and gloves. Aki meanwhile was wearing a golden version of her normal riding suit with the same red design on the torso. The criminal mark on Yusei's face had turned red. Aki had gained a similar mark on her own face and her normal hair ornament had become sparkling gold. Both of their dragon marks were glowing and they each had an ornate golden duel disk.

"What kind of monster is that thing?" Joey wondered.

"It's the monster Yusei and Aki used to beat Aporia." Raven recalled.

"I've never seen a dragon like this before!" Z-one exclaimed. "What have you done?"

"Since I summoned both Shooting Star Dragon and Blazing Rose Dragon during your turn, I was able to overlay them to perform a Collision Xyz Summon!" Yusei explained. "This Xyz monster is the result, Hope Star Dragon-Morning Rose!"

"An… Xyz monster?" Z-one repeated. "I never imagined such a thing… could exist."

"I'm not surprised." Yusei replied. "Aki and I created this monster when we dueled Aporia. He had us against the wall, but we never gave up. We believed we could win because we had hope, and with hope there's also new possibilities. But you lost your hope a long time ago."

"It does not matter what sort of monster you summon!" Z-one declared. "It is still powerless before Star Void Dragon!"

"Why don't you take a closer look at that dragon of yours?" Aki suggested. "Notice anything different about it?"

Z-one looked and saw that the eyes of Star Void Dragon had become pitch black. The black hole that was once at the center of its chest was gone, leaving only an empty chamber in its place.

"What's happening?" a stunned Z-one asked.

"Just like you're more machine than man, that dragon of yours is a Machine-type." Yusei pointed out. "And while Hope Star Dragon is on the field, the effects of all Machine-type monsters are negated."

"That's… impossible!" Z-one denied.

"Since you're obviously too shaken to make a move, I'm starting my turn!" Yugi announced as he drew his next card. "I equip Morning Rose with the Spell card, Magician's Power Force! By removing Dark Magician from the Graveyard, Hope Star Dragon gains its ATK!"

The ghostly form of the Dark Magician reappeared in the track, his body glowing with a purple aura. The wizard flew into the gem on Morning Rose's chest, causing the dragon's ATK to rise to 6500.

"That ends my turn." Yugi announced.

Jaden drew his next card. "I equip Morning Rose with a card of my own, Neos' Power Force! By removing Neos from the Graveyard, his ATK gets added to Hope Star Dragon's!"

A ghostly version of Neos appeared on the battlefield, glowing with a golden aura. The hero of space flew into the gem on Morning Rose's chest, causing its ATK to rise further to 9000.

"That does it for my turn." Jaden announced. "Yusei! Aki! It's up to your guys now!"

Yusei nodded before drawing his next card. "I now activate Hope Star Dragon's effect! By detaching both of its Overlay Units, Morning Rose allows me to summon as many Synchro monsters from my Extra Deck as possible! So now I summon Lightning Warrior, Seven Swords Warrior, Scarred Warrior, and Gravity Warrior!"

The two balls of light orbiting around Morning Rose went into the gem on its chest. The dragon roared and four balls of light shot down from the sky to hover beside it. Two of the lights took the form of Yusei's blonde Lighting Warrior and golden swordsman, while the other two became his battle scared cyborg warrior and a blue creature that resembled a humanoid lion. All four monsters glowed with a brilliant white aura.

"The monsters summoned by Morning Rose's effect can attack or activate their effects." Aki revealed. "But Morning Rose gains the ATK of each Synchro monster on the field."

"Which means its ATK is now 17900!" Yusei finished.

"This… can't be!" Z-one denied.

"Morning Rose, destroy Void Star Dragon!" Yusei and Aki commanded together. "Hope Star Impact!"

The dragon roared and took off at full speed, tearing right through Z-one's lifeless dragon cyborg. Morning Rose continued and struck Z-one, creating a massive explosion that washed out the entire area in a blinding light.

"NNOOOOOO!" Z-one cried out as his life points dropped to zero.

When the light finally subsided, everyone saw that they were back inside the large circular chamber that the duel had started in. Z-one was down on the ground, his mask down completely shattered. Yugi and Jaden landed their D-Wheels as Yusei and Aki dismounted and approached Z-one. Both of them were wearing the outfits they had on before summoning Morning Rose.

"I never imagined… that such an incredible power could exist." Z-one spoke in the voice of a withered old man. "Does this mean… that the future I live through… has changed?"

"You've already changed more than you realized." Yusei told him. "If it wasn't for you, Aki and I wouldn't have the life we have now."

"Then at least… I was able to make things better for my younger self." Z-one observed. "But the future is still at risk. The human race's dark desires… still threaten to throw the Momentum reactor into chaos."

"Don't worry, I won't let that happen." Yusei assured him. "Our future won't the future end the way it ended for you, Aporia, Paradox, and Bruno."

A small smile appeared on Z-one's face. "After seeing the power you wielded… I have no doubt you'll find a much better way to change things than this foolish old man."

"So I guess now that Z-one been beaten, it's all over now." Carly assumed.

"No… not quite." Z-one revealed. "I may be defeated… but the Arc Cradle is still falling towards Neo Domino."

"You mean all that was for nothing?" Joey exclaimed.

"How the duce do we stop this thing?" Jack demanded to know.

"The rotation of the Arc Cradle's reactor… must be reversed." Z-one answered. "Only then will the city be saved."

"Then we need to get to the reactor!" Yusei decided. But before anyone could make a mover they were all frozen in place by a white aura. "Hey! What's going on?"

"Z-one, what are you planning to do?" Bruno asked.

"You've been a good friend to me, Antinomy. But the time has come to say farewell." Z-one replied. "I'm using the last of my power… to send all of you back to Neo Domino. Then I will stop the reactor myself."

"But what will happen to you?" Aki asked.

"There is only one way for me to stop the reactor. I must throw myself into it." Z-one answered.

"But that will kill you!" Yusei pointed out.

Z-one chuckled darkly. "I have been dead for years. There's nothing left for me. The only I kept myself alive was to save the future. But it seems that I've already done that. Besides, I was the one who caused all this. It's only right that I put an end to it."

"But Z-one…" Yusei tired to argue.

"Goodbye, my younger self." Z-one told him. "Live the life that I never had."

Before the conversation could go further, the entire chamber was flooded in light. The light faded and Yusei and the others all found that they were on a hill overlooking the city. The Arc Cradle still loomed overhead.

"We have to get back up there!" Bruno told everyone.

"I don't know how we could." Yusei told him.

"It's over." Yugi told them. "It's al in Z-one's hands now."

"Besides guys, this is what he wants." Jaden pointed out. "I don't think there's really anything more we can do for the guy."

* * *

Z-one flew at top speed through the innermost corridors of the Arc Cradle. He knew that what he was about to do would lead to his death, but he had been ready for death for many years. He had lived for far too long and saw far too much death, and there was nothing worse than being the last living thing on the planet. Z-one welcomed his coming death. For him it would be a much-needed release.

At last, Z-one had arrived in the reactor's core. The device swirled madly with lights of different colors. Z-one flew at full speed towards the core. As he came closer, many faces from his past flew before his eyes. He saw the faces of Bruno, Apoia, Paradox, his father and mother. And the very last face he saw was that of Aki, the only woman he had ever truly loved. Just before he collided with the core, a single tear rolled down Z-one's left cheek.

* * *

Yusei and the others watched as the Arc Cradle exploded with a blinding flash over the city. All at once, the floating castle faded from existence. With the Arc Cradle finally gone, the sky above the city became clear once again.

"So I guess it's really over now, huh?" Crow realized.

"I wish there was something more we could've done for Z-one." Aki admitted.

"This is what he wanted." Jaden reminded them all. "And after the pounding he got in that duel, I don't think Z-one really had a lot of time left anyway."

"Yusei, I think that perhaps that deep down wasn't just to save the future." Yugi interjected. "He wanted to make a better past for himself. Knowing that he had done just that, I think Z-one was able to die in peace."

"This is all well and good, but I think all of you are forgetting one thing." Kaiba interrupted. "Some of us aren't from this time! How the hell are we supposed to get home?"

"I can assist you with that, Seto Kaiba." Raven suddenly spoke in an altered voice. Everyone looked to see that Raven's eyes were glowing with a bright crimson light.

"Uh, Raven honey? Are you okay?" Crow asked.

"Do not be alarmed." Raven replied. "I am simply borrowing Raven's body to communicate with you."

"You're the Crimson Dragon, aren't you?" Yusei realized.

"That is correct." The being speaking through Raven confirmed. "For eons I have protected this world from the stars, acting through those who be my human agents. Now that the one called Z-one has been defeated, I can begin putting things back in order."

"So how can you help us get back to the past?" Jaden asked.

"It is within my power to open the doors of time." The dragon answered through Raven. "Behold."

Suddenly the Crimson Dragon's true form appeared in the sky above and flew down towards the group. When it came close enough, it fired two beams of golden light from its claws. The beams opened up two different golden portals on either side of the group.

"The portal on your left leads to Yugi Muto's time period." The dragon explained through Raven. "The other portal leads to the time of Jaden Yuki. I suggest that those of you from those periods in time leave through the portals now. An extended absence would cause undesirable changes to history."

"Finally we can leave." Kaiba spoke.

"I'm staying here in this time." Noah suddenly announced.

"Huh? Why aren't you coming with us Noah?" Mokuba asked.

"Because I no longer belong in that time." Noah answered. "I'm going to find a place for myself here in this one."

"Are you sure?" Mokuba asked. "There's no way we can change your mind?"

"I'm sorry. I think my going back with you would cause too many problems." Noah replied. "But I'm glad we got to meet again, Mokuba. I'll always think of you as a brother."

"Same here." Mokuba agreed as a small smile appeared on his face. "Good luck in your new life."

"Yugi, Jaden, thanks for your help." Yusei told them. "It's been an honor to have met you both. I don't think I could've beaten Z-one without you."

"Hey, this was actually pretty fun." Jaden replied. "Well except for all the brainwashing and stuff."

"We may be from different periods in history, but our bond will transcend time." Yugi declared. "I'm glad I had the chance to meet all of you."

After Yugi, Jaden, and Yusei all brought their hands together for a moment, they parted. Yugi and his companions went through the portal that would take them back to their time, while Jaden, Alexis, and Jesse went through their own portal. Once they had all gone through, the portals vanished.

"My Signers, you have all done well." The Crimson Dragon spoke through Raven. "The world is once again at peace."

"Crimson Dragon, how come you weren't there in Z-one's time?" Yusei asked. "How come he and the Aki of that time never became Signers?"

"In that timeline, there was no need of my power." The dragon answered. "I imagine that my counterpart of that time was not fully aware of the Meklord Invasion or the mass Zero Reverse that destroyed that world. And even if I was in that time, I doubt that even my powers could of set things right. When Z-one altered history by causing Rugder Goodwin to cause the accident that created Satellite, he opened the door to the underworld and alerted me to what was happening."

"So what happens now?" Aki asked.

"The earth is at peace again. Quite soon I imagine that the Earthbound Immortals will become dormant once more." The dragon answered. "There is no more need of my power here. The time has come for me to take my leave. I shall return should the world once more fall into chaos, but this is farewell. I thank you for all you have done."

With that, Raven's eyes stopped glowing and the Crimson Dragon took back off into the sky. As it flew away, the marks of the Signers lit up and then turned into trails of light that followed after the dragon. Yusei and the others watched as the Crimson Dragon faded into the distance.

"Yusei, this goodbye for me as well." Bruno suddenly spoke.

"You're not staying?" a surprised Yusei asked.

"I came back to this time to change the future for the better." Bruno replied. "Now that we have, the time has come for me to find a place in this new world."

"I'd like to come with if you don't mind." Noah requested. "We seem to be looking for the same thing."

"I would enjoy having you along." Bruno agreed.

"I'd like to come with too." Sherry requested.

"You're going with them Sherry?" a surprised Misty asked. "How come?"

"Not sure really." Sherry answered. "I've just got a lot to think over. Especially after the stuff I saw during that duel. Maybe traveling with this mechanic will help me find the answers I'm looking for."

"I see." Misty replied. "Then I wish you luck."

"So how 'bout it boys? Mind if I tag along?" Sherry asked Bruno and Noah.

"Oh! Uh, not at all." Bruno answered as his cheeks turned a bit red. "That is if it's okay with Noah, of course."

"I don't see why not." Noah indifferently agreed.

"Bruno, don't be a stranger, okay?" Yusei told him.

"We will see each other again." Bruno assured him as they shook hands.

With that, the three rode off. Though Sherry had to ride with Noah. The rest of the group watched until they were out of sight.

"So now what?" Luna wondered.

"Now we all go home." Yusei decided.

* * *

Yusei and Aki had returned home to the Fudo mansion with the twins. As Leo and Luna headed up stairs to their rooms, Yusei and Aki headed to the sitting room. An exhausted Yusei slumped onto the couch.

Aki sat down and cuddled up next to him. "Long day, huh?"

"I'll say." Yusei agreed. "You know I've always wondered what my life would've been like if the Zero Reverse never happened. But I never imagined anything like the life Z-one had."

"Just think. You could've ended up marrying Sherry." Aki pointed out.

Yusei shuddered at the very thought. "That's probably going to be in my nightmares. I wonder if we should've said something to Bruno?"

Aki chuckled. "I don't think we have to worry about that. Seems like Sherry changed her tune a little after seeing that vision of Z-one's past."

"She did seem a little more humble." Yusei agreed.

"So what now?" Aki asked.

"Now it's up to me to figure out a way to keep Z-one's future from happening again." Yusei answered.

"I'm sure you'll figure it out." Aki told him. "But it can wait until tomorrow, can't it?"

"Yeah. Right now we can all use a little rest." Yusei agreed. With that, the two of them kissed and dozed off in each other's arms.

* * *

**Author's Note:** While I had an easy time figuring out the beginning of this final duel, I had a hard time figuring out how to end it at first. I decided to use an Xyz monster like in the last two books. In this trilogy, Xyz monsters came to represent the other possible future besides the Meklord apocalypse, which of course is the ZEXAL era. At first I tried coming up with an Xyz monster that Yugi, Jaden, and Yusei would form together, but I was drawing a blank. And after giving the problem some hard thought, I decided to just use the Xyz monster Yusei and Aki used to beat Aporia and have Yugi and Jaden power it up. After all, the love story between Yusei and Aki is at the core of this trilogy. It was only right that the Xyz monster they created would be the one used to defeat Z-one.

The final duel may be over, but the story itself obviously isn't. There are still a few things that need to be wrapped up. So stay tuned for the epilogue. In the meantime, please review and let me know what you think.


	25. Future Colors

**Author's Note:** Normally, I simply would've called this chapter an epilogue. But as this the final chapter of the biggest 5D's story I've done so far, I decided to name it after the final ending theme of the anime, _Future Colors_. It seemed only appropriate.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, and the character of Raven is the creation of sammycrusinix.

* * *

Epilogue: "Future Colors"

Five years had gone by since the day the Arc Cradle appeared over Neo Domino. During that time, the city enjoyed an era of total peace and the former Signers and their friends carried on with their lives. Only a year after the event, Jack and Carly had finally gotten married. Soon after, Jack had joined the pro dueling league and became known as one of the world's strongest Turbo Duelists. Carly meanwhile had become a well-known TV reporter for a national news station.

Crow too had joined the pro league along with Sect, and the two of them had gained their own formidable reputation. Raven on the other hand had attended medical school with Aki and became a doctor. Leo and Luna had transferred to the Duel Academy that Jaden Yuki had attended. Luna had been placed in the elite Obelisk Blue dorm, while Leo, due to a mediocre entrance exam, ended up in Slifer Red. Yet despite Leo's low rank, both he and Luna soon became known as two of the strongest students the academy ever had.

Kiryu and Misty had developed a relationship, and had moved to a small little town known as Satisfaction Town. The village had been renamed in Kiryu's honor after both he and Misty helped rid the town of a gang of outlaws. Bruno and Noah meanwhile had started up a small company that produced state of the art D-Wheels, which Sherry would help to test out. In the end, Yusei and Aki were the only ones to stay in Neo Domino. Aki had become one of the top physicians at Neo Domino General Hospital.

As for Yusei, he had retired from dueling to take over as head of the Momentum reactor project. Shortly after, he had developed a safeguard to prevent the apocalypse that destroyed the world in Z-one's time, the Fortune System. With the system in place, it became safe to introduce the Momentum reactor globally. It was the beginning of a whole new age for the world. One where the human race no longer had to depend on fossil fuels or nuclear reactors.

It was late in the afternoon, and Yusei had returned home from the lab early. His staff had suggested to him that he take the rest of the afternoon off as things were running smoothly. And seeing as he had been working fairly hard for the last two weeks overseeing the globalization of the reactors, Yusei had decided that taking a little time off was a good idea.

As Yusei sat on the couch reading a book, Aki walked in and kissed him on the cheek, getting his attention. "Hi there."

"Hey." Yusei greeted back as he put down his book. "What are you doing back so early."

"Well it's been a slow day, for one thing." Aki answered as she sat down next to him. "But I also got some news that I think you should hear personally. Your office said you came home when I called them, so here I am."

"What kind of news?" Yusei asked as a hint of worry came to his face. "Is this about how you've been feeling sick for the last few mornings?"

Aki looked him in the eyes and smiled. "I'm pregnant."

Yusei's eyes went wide. "I… wow! Aki that's… incredible."

"I know." Aki agreed as she placed Yusei's hand on her stomach. "We're going to have a baby."

Yusei and Aki merely looked at one another after that. And before long, their lips met in a kiss. They had no idea what sort of future was in store for them or their unborn child, but they were sure that it would be a bright one. They would make sure of it.

5D's ALTERNATIVE: END

* * *

**Afterward:** Well, there we have it ladies and gentlemen. Next to the original series of course, 5D's is probably my favorite series in the Yu-Gi-Oh! franchise. There are a lot of elements in the series that really appeal to me. But as good as the series was, I felt that the writers made a couple of mistakes towards the end. One was with Z-one's identity, and the other was leaving Yusei and Aki's relationship unresolved. But one thing I've learned about fan fiction is that it serves as a kind of wish fulfillment. It's a way for people to in their own way for people to add to or improve the stories they enjoy, or perhaps retell them in another way. Yet I don't claim that my little trilogy is better than the anime. As the title says, it's simply an alternative.

This trilogy turned out to be one of the biggest writing projects I've done so far. The past six or seven months I've worked on it has had it's share of rough spots for me. There were days when I couldn't bring myself to sit down and work on a single chapter, and other days when working on these stories gave me an outlet for my frustration. And while there are things about each story that I feel like I could've done better, I'm quite proud of this trilogy. I hope everyone has enjoyed reading it.

I'd like to thank everyone who's read and reviewed not just this story but the others that came before it. I'd also like to give a big thanks to sammycrusinix for letting me use her character of Raven. I don't think I could've come up with a better love interest for Crow. Anyway, as big as this trilogy has been, I don't think I'm done with 5D's just yet. I do have a few bonus stories and a prequel in mind, not to mention a sequel based on _Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL_. But for now I'm going to step back and turn my attention to other projects, like my Pokemon AU and a few brand new story ideas. So for now, thanks again for reading. This trilogy has been a blast.

Please review and let me know what you think.


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